Expats explore industrial heritage and traditional craft of Yangpu
Twenty expatriates from Austria, France, Germany, Ghana, Netherlands and Russia participated in CNS Family program yesterday, discovering industrial heritage sites and learning how to make scented sachets, which is listed as intangible culture heritage by Yangpu District. CNS Family is a program dedicated to organizing events for connecting expat families in Shanghai.
Expats take a bus tour, learning about the history and culture of Yangpu District from tour guide Xue Ying, a Lonely Planet writer.
A "CNS Family: Discovering Industrial Heritage in Yangpu" event was jointly hosted by the Information Office of Yangpu District and City News Service.
Expats visited the newly opened WorldSkills Museum housed in a historical site and studied making sachets in Green Hill, which is a space renovated from a former tobacco warehouse.
The event gave expatriates access to the Yangpu riverside, a national example of industrial heritage protection.
Expats outside the WorldSkills Museum along the Yangpu riverside.
The expats were very interested in the architectural style and history of the WorldSkills Museum, which is in the century-old Yong'an warehouse.
"It's a very beautiful building," said Mark Dekker, an architect from the Netherlands. "It brings a lot of things together, like the past and the future of skills. China is one of the countries leading in new developments. The museum brings the really old skills and new things together in this old heritage building."
A foreign family is captivated by the installations inside the WorldSkills Museum.
While visiting, not only can they see the significant role that skills play in daily life such as clothing, food, shelter, and transportation, but also witness the astonishing achievements in skill innovation that humanity has achieved since the industrial revolution.
Expat families also enjoyed making sachets at the Green Hill, which is renovated from a former tobacco warehouse and now one of the most popular places to take photos on the Yangpu riverside.
In the artistry of making sachets, expatriates picked up needles and threads for the first time, carefully crafting their own creations. The joy was particularly palpable among the children, who found pure delight in the creative process.
"Sachets-making was challenging for me, but it's really nice experience," said Thomas Eiting from Germany. "You can really put it in your room and then always feeling calm and relaxed."
Cedric Fillon, from France, added: "I would say this is definitely interesting to learn how to do this type of things and to discover more about the Chinese traditions. It's a nice activity."
Tatyana Grinenko from Russia said: "I really like Yangpu. It's a very interesting area because it's very green, with so many different kinds of trees. I wasn't aware previously of the multitude of universities situated there, and it's noteworthy that globally renowned companies also have a presence in that area".
Expatriates capture the beautiful scenery along the Yangpu riverside.
Under the guidance of professional teachers, children make sachets.
An expat takes a sniff of the Chinese herbs placed inside the sachets.
