秦时丽人明月心
How Kaifeng is winning foreign hearts with Song culture and open inclusiveness_我的网站
一 |
Fireworks bloomed in golden-red sparks across the night sky, the hems of Hanfu skirts swaying gently in the glow of the lanterns, while the steam from soup dumplings mingled with the bustling sounds of the marketplace. Several foreign tourists held up their phones to capture the atmosphere. This was an ordinary day in Kaifeng, Central China's Henan Province, yet every corner brimmed with the lively atmosphere of Song-era life and an open, welcoming warmth.
This city, once known as Bianliang, the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty a thousand years ago, was already a thriving metropolis that broke the boundaries of traditional wards and markets and opened gates to promote maritime foreign trade.
Today, it continues to carry forward the unique charm of Song culture and an atmosphere of openness and inclusiveness, drawing an increasing number of international visitors — people who are not merely passing through, but many who have chosen to work and live here.
Among them is Xiao Feifei, a performer from Ghana who has been working in Kaifeng for more than a year.
"When I first arrived in Kaifeng, there weren't many foreign visitors in the scenic areas. Now I meet new visitors almost every day — some are European tourists who decided to come on the spur of the moment thanks to convenient visa policies, others are families who specifically bring their children to experience Song culture," he said.
The figures confirm this change: in the first half of 2026, the number of inbound tourists to Kaifeng grew by approximately 130 percent year-on-year, with source markets expanding beyond the traditional Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan regions to include multiple countries in Southeast Asia, Europe, and North America.
Why are more and more foreigners willing to come to Kaifeng — and even stay? When Global Times reporters walked through the city, the answers gradually became clear.
'A home to stay'
Xiao Feifei's story with the city begins in 2025. He arrived in Kaifeng and worked as an acrobat and performer in the Wansuishan Martial Arts City, a Disney-style theme park that features many scenes and plays inspired by "Outlaws of the Marsh."
At first he viewed it as just a job — finish each performance to earn a living. But as time passed, he found himself increasingly unable to leave.
"The most unforgettable moment for me was one day after a performance, just as I was about to rest, a security guard wheeled over a boy who was my fan. Unable to speak, he simply stretched out his arms with all his strength, asking for a hug. I bent down and gently held him. In that instant, a tenderness I had never felt before welled up inside me," Xiao Feifei told the Global Times.
"There are also the children who call me 'big bro.' They post videos online looking for me and specially come to play with me. These moments make me feel that I am not merely working — I am truly bringing joy to others," he noted.
It was this sense of purpose, of being accepted and warmly embraced that made Xiao Feifei decide to stay. "I feel the inclusiveness and care of the people here every day. This is how I understand Chinese culture," he said. "Kaifeng has become my second home."
Xiao Feifei is not alone. The scenic area now has more than 200 foreign performers and staff. Zhao Kuan, general manager of Wansuishan Martial Arts City, explained that while the park is rooted in traditional Chinese wuxia culture -- a genre of Chinese fiction or cinema featuring the adventures of martial artists in ancient China, it also incorporates elements from foreign martial traditions, such as Zorro-style figures.
"This allows overseas visitors to find a sense of familiarity while experiencing something uniquely Chinese," Zhao said. "It reflects the open and inclusive spirit of Song culture itself."
Currently, more than 3,000 performances of various sizes themed around wuxia culture — including live-action martial arts dramas and character model shows — are staged every day.
Immersive experience
Martin, a computer technology teacher from Eindhoven in the Netherlands, is visiting China for the first time. This two-week trip has taken him through several cities, and the Millennium City Park, a Song Dynasty-themed park in Kaifeng marks one of his final stops before heading home.
"The moment you step into the park, you are immediately immersed. The colors, the lights, the performances — everything is perfectly coordinated. Even though I don't understand the dialogue, I can clearly feel the historical atmosphere of the ancient Song Dynasty and its everyday street life. It's not simply about performance tricks; it's telling a real story that makes you feel as if you've traveled back in time," Martin told the Global Times.
Millennium City Park is modeled on the renowned painting the Qingming Festival by the Riverside, recreating the street scenes, everyday life, and live performances of the Song Dynasty. Centered on Hanfu styling and makeup, intangible cultural heritage handicrafts, park-wide NPC interactions, and large-scale live shows, the scenic area transforms Song Dynasty rituals, folk customs, aesthetics, and the spirit of family and nation into living scenes that visitors can wear, make, watch, and interact with, an employee from the park told the Global Times.
Foreign tourists need no direct historical knowledge or language skills to appreciate the elegance and vibrant street life of the Song people through costume, hands-on crafts, performances, and interactions, he noted.
Thai blogger Ake has loved the "Justice Bao" series of films and TV dramas since childhood and has long admired the culture of integrity and chivalry embodied by Bao Zheng, the legendary judge who lived from 999 to 1062 with his expert handling of criminal cases, his fearlessness in giving straightforward advice, and his deep resentment of evil deeds.
When he visited the Ancient Kaifeng County Government, known as the first government office in Ancient China, he actively took part in a simulated court-hearing experience, personally feeling the trial process of a Northern Song prefectural government. He even had the opportunity to take a photo with the actor playing Bao Zheng after performance.
"The culture of integrity and the rule of law represented by Bao Zheng serves as a shared emotional resonance for tourists both at home and abroad. The spiritual core of fairness, justice, and caring for the people for the public good resonates with the common aspirations of people from different regions," Duan Bo, the general manager, told the Global Times.
The scenic area centers on recreating feel and style of the Northern Song government, including the main court hall and the council hall. Combined with a series of live-action performances centered around Bao Gong's case trials, it allows visitors to gain an intuitive understanding of how the prefectural government operated at that time, he added.
Unique attraction
Kaifeng, known as China's "Ancient Capital of Eight Dynasties," became the world's first metropolis with a population of one million during the Northern Song Dynasty. It features a globally unique "city-upon-city" wonder of six stacked cities, and its central axis has remained unchanged for a thousand years, Liu Dong, deputy director of Kaifeng Municipal Bureau of Culture, Radio, Television and Tourism, told the Global Times.
In addition to its rich cultural atmosphere, Kaifeng is home to many historical relics: the Iron Pagoda, the city's landmark with nearly thousand-year-old history, and the Fan Pagoda, the city's the oldest surviving above-ground structure. The Great Xiangguo Temple was a royal monastery of the Northern Song, while the Zhou Bridge relics recreate the prosperous scenes of the Bianhe River from a thousand years ago, according to Liu.
How has Kaifeng utilized its rich cultural resources to transform itself into a renowned tourist city?
"We have consistently adhered to the principle of balancing protection and "development" in its cultural tourism policy," Liu said.
On the one hand, important historical sites have been protected through physical restoration and digital preventive conservation. On the other hand, each scenic area is required to have a clear positioning and distinctive features — The Millennium City Park deeply cultivates folk customs and street life, creating a sense of time travel; the Ancient Kaifeng County Government highlights the culture of the rule of law and integrity; while Wansuishan Martial Arts City revitalizes wuxia narratives, emphasizing interactive immersion, Liu noted.
Boosted by China's visa-free policy, the "one ticket for three days" offer adopted by many scenic areas in the city has become even more appealing. It allows visitors to enter the same scenic area multiple times within three days with a single ticket.
"We don't have to rush. We can take our time watching the performances and wandering around. One day is nowhere near enough — this policy is so thoughtful," a visitor surnamed Yang, who is from Denmark and traveling with her husband, told the Global Times in the Millennium City Park.
Meanwhile, Kaifeng offers a full-service experience for foreign visitors: bank branches provide bilingual assistance for cash withdrawals and currency exchange; the immigration hall has a dedicated green channel for visa-free transit travelers, enabling quick handling of lost documents and other emergencies; and multilingual signage has been upgraded across all A-level scenic spots, tourist hubs, museums, and pedestrian streets, the bureau said.
All of these measures resonate with the spirit of the Central Urban Work Conference in 2025, which highlights efforts to build culturally-vibrant cities characterized by high ethical and moral standards. By effectively protecting and revitalizing Song culture and delivering high-quality services, Kaifeng has made foreign visitors not only willing to come but also willing to stay longer and return — precisely practicing the requirements of building a "livable" and "culturally vibrant" city.
As a new day begins, Large-scale immersive performances and processions unfold, NPC characters weave through the ancient streets interacting with visitors, and the entire city is illuminated by light, sound, and the everyday vitality of the marketplace.
A thousand years ago, Bianliang was an open and inclusive world-class metropolis. Today's Kaifeng, with its Song-dynasty elegance and sincere hospitality, once again opens its doors to the world — and quietly captures the hearts of many who have come from afar.
。 加息之声骤然兴起！ 今日中午时分，韩国加息预期突然加重。日本三菱日联金融集团将韩国央行加息预期提前至8月，并倾向于韩国央行将“连续加息”。星展银行经济学家Taimur Baig和Radhika Rao预计，韩国央行将在8月会议上将基准利率上调25个基点至3.00%。
二 | 在韩国加息预期提升之时，澳大利亚第二大养老基金建立了多年来规模最大的日元超配头寸，押注市场低估了日本央行加息的可能性。而更让人意外的是澳大利亚和欧洲，花旗集团认为，澳大利亚储备银行通胀预测可能偏离预期，9月加息风险上升。 欧洲央行执行委员会成员施纳贝尔今日更是直言，鉴于经济韧性，必须进一步提高利率。 加息预期突然提升 今天市场出现了一个很有意思的现象，几个发达经济体的加息预期突然全面提升。 首先是韩国。星展银行经济学家Taimur Baig和Radhika Rao预计，韩国央行将在8月会议上将基准利率上调25个基点至3.00%，同时有较大空间将2026年GDP增长预期从目前的2.6%上调至约3.5%、将2027年CPI通胀预期从目前的2.3%上调至接近3.0%。他们指出，上半年经济增长强于预期、核心通胀持续以及房价上涨均构成支持因素。日本三菱日联金融集团更是倾向于韩国央行将“连续加息”。该机构近日预测，韩国央行将在本月再次加息25个基点。 其次是日本。高盛将日本央行加息预期明显前移，认为9月会议可能成为政策转折点，汇率稳定正在取代工资数据，成为最紧迫的变量。高盛日本经济学家Tomohiro Ota在8月25日研报中指出，现在预计日本央行将在9月加息，此前预期为2027年1月；之后预计在2027年1月和7月分别加息，政策利率升至1.75%。 澳大利亚第二大养老基金建立了多年来规模最大的日元超配头寸。管理约3700亿澳元（2650亿美元）退休储蓄的澳大利亚退休信托高级投资组合经理Jimmy Louca表示，过去六个月，随着日元兑美元走弱至接近160，该基金不断增加这一头寸。在许多投资者寻求卖出日元之际，这是一笔少见的日元看涨押注。
三 | 澳大利亚和欧洲的加息预期也意外变强。花旗集团经济学家法拉兹·赛义德表示，7月份强劲的通胀数据意味着第三季度环比通胀率将超过澳大利亚储备银行此前预期的0.8%的涨幅。花旗集团此前一直预期澳储行将在11月加息25个基点；在下周公布第二季度GDP数据之前，赛义德现在更加确信澳储行今年仍需再次加息，并认为9月份加息的风险相当大，而且加息次数可能更多而非更少。 欧洲央行执委施纳贝尔更是表示，由于中东冲突旷日持久，加之欧元区经济表现意外强劲，给通胀带来上行风险，利率必须进一步上调。
四 | 消费者价格涨幅可能在“一段较长时期”内超过2%，如果等到这种影响传导至工资后才采取行动，政策制定者将落后于形势。施纳贝尔警告称，除石油之外的能源价格压力正变得更加持久。
五 | 鉴于欧洲天然气库存水平偏低，天然气市场的走势尤其令人担忧，这给通胀带来了实质性的上行风险。 美国的“相悖”动作 对于全球市场来说，美国的动向可能才是决定因素。 据英国金融时报报道，美国财长贝森特干预债券市场的举措，与美联储遏制通胀的努力背道而驰。贝森特意外干预美债市场，令收益率先跌后涨，引发的市场反应令沃什周五在杰克逊霍尔的演讲面临更大的压力。美联储主席沃什此前一直强调，投资者应该更多依据经济数据和市场价格来判断，而不是等待美联储前瞻指引来告诉市场未来利率走势。 如今，外界担忧，如果贝森特控制收益率的努力持续无效，美联储可能也会面临介入市场的压力。沃什和贝森特都是亿万富豪斯坦利·德鲁肯米勒的门生，两人经常会面，据悉关系融洽。不过，外界目前的印象是，两者各自领导的财政部与美联储“正朝着相反的方向前进”。 此前不久，美国宏观研究机构Bianco Research创始人、长期跟踪美国债券市场的Jim Bianco在Bankless播客表示，需要美联储明确而可信的抗通胀立场，甚至重新加息，才可能压低长期债券持有人要求的期限溢价，让长端收益率回落。美联储降的是短端利率，而房贷、企业长期融资和股票估值跟的是10年期、30年期美债收益率，这一轮两者分了家。原因不在增长，而在可信度。 景顺亚太区环球市场策略师赵耀庭却认为，与其关注全球各地央行究竟会减息还是加息25个基点，长期利率持续上升的趋势更值得重视。
六 | 长端收益率上升已削弱美联储进一步加息的必要性。
七 | 美国整体借贷成本普遍上升，金融环境亦已收紧，这意味着债券市场实际上正在代美联储发挥收紧政策的作用。
（文章来源：券商中国）。
Current article:http://b2t.ganweilingmukuai.shop/c83/20260826/4403.html
Published on:15:21:45