The Israel-China Friendship Society (ICFS) celebrated the Chinese New Year (Spring Festival 春节) on January 25th in the sport center of the Tel-Aviv university, with over 70 participants, including members of ICFS, members of FRCA (Former Residents of China Association), Chinese and Israeli students and a delegation from the Chinese embassy headed by the new Ambassador Mr. Xiao Junzheng.

In the event, people experienced traditional Chinese activities such as Chinese painting and calligraphy, playing Majiang, preparing the holiday traditional food of fried dumplings (Jiaozi 饺子), listen to Chinese music and mingling with friends and colleagues. Mr. Gal Furer, Chairman of ICFS, gave a presentation explaining the historical origin and customs of the holiday as well as the significance of the year of the SNAKE. The Chinese ambassador gave a warm and encouraging speech, and a joint team of Chinese and Israeli students performed a show which illustrated the characteristics of the holiday. The team finalized its show with a popular Chinese song for the new year. The celebration ended up with a delicious and authentic Chinese meal based on boiled Jiaozi.

The Ambassador toasted on a glass of Baijiu and also demonstrated a talent for Chinese calligraphy. It seems everyone enjoyed a lot, and the Chinese embassy published a very positive review of the event in their blog (Press the Link).