As the Dalian 2025 FISU University World Cup Football gets underway, players from various countries have been engaging in rich, multi-layered cultural exchanges.
In recent days, Dongbei University of Finance and Economics (DUFE) welcomed two visiting men’s football teams—the University of Granada (Spain) and Thailand’s Thammasat University—for a campus tour and exchange.
Zhu Kai, Assistant to the President of DUFE, extended a warm welcome on behalf of the university. Calling football a “global language,” Zhu noted that the visit not only builds a bridge for sports exchanges between the institutions but also creates an opportunity for meaningful dialogue among young students from China and abroad. The two visiting teams exchanged team flags with DUFE’s men’s football team and presented each other with jerseys.
Xie Yang, faculty from DUFE’s School of International Education, introduced Dalian’s development as China’s “City of Football,” including its distinctive football culture. With the help of video materials, the visitors gained a vivid picture of the city’s football heritage.
A tea artist then presented a traditional Chinese tea ceremony. The graceful sequence—warming the pot, adding tea leaves, pouring water, and decanting the brew—unfolded to the gentle strains of the guqin, traditional Chinese musical instruments, lending an air of elegance to the room. Guests sampled Chinese tea, asked about tea etiquette and classical stories, and were clearly captivated by the cultural depth on display.
Throughout the visit, DUFE players accompanied their guests and chatted freely—about sport, study, and daily life—as they strolled from the university’s history wall to its cherry blossom garden. Football served as a shared bond, carrying the friendship between students from both sides.
On September 25, a 22-member delegation from the University of Wollongong (Australia) visited the Shahekou Campus of Dalian Jiaotong University.
The team toured the campus’s “Shangyou” steam locomotive—donated by alumni in 2006 and now a beloved cultural landmark where graduates traditionally take commemorative photos. Nearby, a coach in traditional Chinese attire led the players in an immersive session of Baduanjin, a classic qigong practice.
At the university’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Institute, the visitors watched demonstrations by the TOE Robotics Team. Dynamic showcases by a RoboMaster championship robot team and a prize-winning quadruped from this year’s China National College Robotics Competition (ROBOCON) drew repeated applause.
The players also tried their hand at crafting tuanshan(traditional Chinese round silk fans). Though small, tuanshan embody a refined Eastern aesthetic—within a simple circle, careful composition and layered ink bring landscapes, flowers, and birds to life. On site, the instructor walked everyone through the steps with a gentle touch. A student representative added calligraphic inscriptions. Fully engaged, the footballers sketched motifs and tried their hand at writing until the once-blank fan faces came alive. Each tuanshan was finished with Dalian Jiaotong University’s stone-carved seal, becoming a unique token of friendship between the two institutions.
This visit highlighted the university’s strengths in scientific innovation, traditional culture, and people-to-people exchange, deepening mutual understanding and laying a solid foundation for higher-level cooperation ahead.
On the afternoon of September 25, Dalian Vanguard Senior High School hosted the University of Wollongong delegation in a lively program of cross-cultural exchange.
At the culture wall and calligraphy exhibition in the Shangde Building, the visitors paused to admire the school’s strong cultural tradition. The welcome ceremony was emceed entirely in two languages by students of Dalian Vanguard Senior High School. Their fluent bilingual delivery and poised demeanor not only demonstrated strong intercultural competence, but—buoyed by youthful energy—also conveyed a warm “friends from afar” welcome. The national anthems of China and Australia were performed in succession, setting a respectful tone for the event.
A flowing violin melody intertwined with the delicate timbre of the pipa, creating an artistic dialogue across cultures. At the calligraphy booth, students wielded brush and ink; in the pottery, tie-dye, and embroidery areas, handcrafted works showcased the ingenuity of traditional crafts—and invited hands-on exploration. In the tea ceremony corner, the gentle fragrance of tea embodied Chinese hospitality. Through sound, sight, touch, and taste, students offered an immersive demonstration of the school’s “Educating Five Domains Simultaneously” approach, that is, moral, intellectual, physical, aesthetic and labor education, and its tangible results.
Capping the day, a spirited flag football friendly on the school field captured joyful moments of international friendship—adding a vivid athletic note to this cultural exchange.
29 Sep
