To welcome new international students and provide them with a better experience of Chinese traditional culture, Nottingham University Business School China (NUBS China), together with the UNNC Confucius Institute, ingeniously organised a mooncake-making event.
Seeing international students from all over the world once again gathering at the UNNC campus, Dr Yi Wang, Director for Educational Partnerships at NUBS China, expressed her joy, "This is our first cultural event for international students since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic and I am really happy to see everyone."
As the host of the event, Dr Bo Huang, Exchange in Coordinator at NUBS China, explained the process of making mooncakes. UNNC Confucius Institute prepared a video about the Mid-Autumn Festival to help everyone better understand its cultural significance and special meaning to the Chinese people.
The organisers prepared two boxes for each participating international student. One box contained four fillings and the other contained four dough portions. Additionally, each student was provided with a pair of transparent gloves and a mooncake mould.
Initially, everyone was somewhat reserved, as it was their first time making mooncakes. However, through mutual exchange and learning, everyone quickly found the knack: first, roll out the dough, then wrap the filling inside, gently press it into the mould and a beautiful, high-quality mooncake is ready!
Jack, a 2023 master's student from the UK studying at NUBS China, said it was a very novel and fun experience. Upon learning that the ice-skin mooncake he made was edible, he immediately stuffed one into his mouth and gave a thumbs-up.
A Russian student sitting next to Jack kept his phone camera on throughout the mooncake-making process. When asked if he was livestreaming, he quickly replied with a smile, "I just wanted to record the whole process and show it to my mother."
Some students even showed on-the-spot creativity, mixing two different colours of dough together to create a two-tone mooncake.
During the mooncake-making process, the organisers also arranged for a musical performance to liven up the atmosphere. When the melody of The Moon Represents My Heart played, many international students sang along.
Andrew Edwards, Director of Undergraduate Programmes, and Dr Jun Luo, Director of Postgraduate Programmes at NUBS China, also joined the event, interacting with the international students face-to-face.
At the end of the event, everyone carefully packaged the mooncakes they made. These could be taken home or given as special gifts to friends. Everyone couldn't help praising the organisers for their thoughtfulness.
The most frequently used word to describe the event was "Perfect." Some even expressed their wish to participate in such cultural experiences every week because it was so fantastic!
NUBS China is committed to providing a unique learning experience for students from all over the world. The Business School will be organising a series of events to give international students the opportunity to experience more of Chinese culture and society, and to enhance communication and understanding between Chinese and international students through hands-on interaction.