Apart from the soaring growth of economic and trade communication, China and ASEAN are extending their cooperation in the field of culture, and the ongoing second China-ASEAN expo discloses that tourism is the key to opening this gate.

"To ordinary tourists who come to visit the expo, they may not remember the specific trade turnover between China and ASEAN countries," said Wen Zhongliang, deputy secretary general of the expo, "but they can have deep impressions on the activities of 'City of Charm', for this really brings them the mood of festival."

In front of the display area of Chiang Mai, the wooden houses with Thai flavors become the camera focus of hundreds of travelers, while in the area of Beijing, many tourists from ASEAN nations were deeply allured by the traditional "flour figure art" of the traditional folk artists.

One of the most shining features of this expo, "City of Charm" showcases the most typical tourism cities of China and ASEAN.

The staff of the exhibition hall said thousands of visitors, both from home and overseas, come to enjoy the hallmarks of the 11 cities. City of Charm deserves its fame.

A tourist from Beijing said he has great affectations for the southeast Asian nations. He had, during the past few years, visited Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia, and he is thinking of traveling to Indonesia and the Philippines at the end of this year.

According to statistics from China National Tourism Administration, 2.76 million Chinese, one third of the total who traveled abroad, visited the ASEAN countries last year, an increase of 45 percent over the same 2003 period.

At the same time, nearly 3 million people from ASEAN member nations toured China in 2004, a year-on-year rise of 52.6 percent. The latest report by the World Tourism Organization shows that during the past decade, about 65 percent of the foreign tourists touring China were from Asia, in which ASEAN travelers accounted for over a quarter.

The organization forecasts that China will become the world's largest tourism destination nation in 2013. And experts say the deeper and closer Sino-ASEAN relations will bring about a new tourism craze to the region.

As a matter of fact, tourism has already been taken as a "golden key" to open the win-win gate and inspir cultural exchanges by China and ASEAN countries.

Insiders say this is ascribed to the characteristics of tourism industry, which is featured with quick and high return on investment.

Currently, tourism is ranked one of the world's most booming and vibrant industries, and it has drawn attention from all countries. In the meantime, noted experts, since the most tourists prefer visiting historic sites and cultural relics while learning about the local conventions and traditions, tourism will help spread the culture of different countries in a more direct manner than via political exchanges and economic activities.

Indonesian tourist Maureen Tempobolon said she has heard of renowned Chinese tea for long and this time she bought some a dozen kinds of fragrant Chinese tea on the expo. She said she would bring them back to share with her kinsfolk and friends to enjoy and compare them with those tea grown in Indonesia.

Rong Xiaoning, director of the cultural department of south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, said China, especially its Guangxi region, has deep historical connections with the ASEAN member countries. A host of ethnicities in Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar were rooted from south China. He said similarities in history, languages and culture are likely to bring about ASEAN nations' recognition and resonance to the Chinese culture.

Ouk Keo Rattanak, vice governor of Cambodia's Siem Reap Province, said the ASEAN nations are also striving to develop their cultural industries with the help of tourism. The province signed a tourism cooperation agreement with southwest China's Yunnan Province last year, and a group of Chinese specialists went there to help develop tourism resources.

The official said he hopes to set up this kind of relations with more provinces and regions in China at this expo so as to boost the growth of tourism and cultural exchanges in the two countries.

Source: Xinhua