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2011年10月25日，首届世界浙商大会在杭州隆重召开。来自海外的浙商不仅是经济领域的领军人物，而且乐当中外文化交流的使者——
姜昆等艺术家是他的好朋友
“上有天堂，下有苏杭。”在风光秀丽的杭州西子湖畔三台山景区280号，有一座装修和设计风格参照世界著名的“玛歌”红酒产区各大酒庄建筑风格的山庄——浙江玛歌西湖山庄。这个山庄的创办人，就是浙江籍的著名爱国侨领、法国华商会会长卓旭光先生。
听一家媒体的朋友介绍，2010年浙江玛歌西湖山庄开业时，著名相声演员姜昆、李金斗、戴志诚、李建华和哑剧演员王全和、王全利等文艺界明星专程来杭州祝贺。于是，我在大会间隙采访了卓先生。
卓旭光出生在著名的侨乡青田县温溪镇高岗村，1988年他前往法国帮爷爷和父母打理生意。经过多年的打拼，他不仅在生意上取得了突破，而且还当选法国华商会会长。经商之余，他很想在中法文化交流方面做点有益事情。
2008年5月初，由法国华商会与中国曲艺家协会联系，邀请到姜昆、牛群、石富宽、戴志诚等一批曲艺名家前往法国演出。
为了主办好这次演出活动，卓旭光跑前跑后，花费了许多心血。他在巴黎安排了最好的大剧院，请了一批法国主流媒体记者参与宣传报道，以扩大中国文化的影响；他热情邀请了法国及巴黎的一批政要、艺术家、文化学者和市民代表作为贵宾，观看演出；同时组织在法国的华侨、留学生等分批观看。由于组织有方，演出节目精彩，受到了中法观众的热烈欢迎。法国的主流媒体纷纷在主要版面和黄金时间给予重点报道，称赞“中国的文化太有魅力了，这次演出活动是一次很成功的中法文化交流活动”。
通过这次演出活动，卓旭光与姜昆等艺术家结成好友。2010年，姜昆听说卓旭光在杭州创办浙江玛歌西湖山庄，欣然将“姜昆艺友社”设在山庄内，并挥毫书赠了多幅书法作品为山庄补壁。这让卓旭光深受感动，他开展中法文化交流的积极性更高了，在中国和法国都收到了很好的效果。
海外舞台上热推中华文化
在首届世界浙商大会期间，笔者采访了中国华侨国际文化交流促进会副会长、世界温州人联谊总会副会长、加拿大华人社团联席会创会主席、加拿大中国工商联合会主席、加拿大温哥华文化中心荣誉主席、加拿大温州同乡总会荣誉会长滕达先生。采访前他先打开手提电脑，让我观看了两张照片，一张是他与加拿大总理哈珀的合影，另一张是他亲自操办的“中华情”演出活动照。
接着，滕达先生从电脑中找出一份资料给我看。
1999年，老家在浙江温州的滕达移居加拿大发展，经过多年的拼搏，他先后创办了加拿大金茂集团国际投资有限公司和加拿大新亚基金有限公司，分别担任董事长和总裁的职务，从事经济投资和财经方面的工作，事业有了快速的发展。2005年2月，他被推选为加拿大温州同乡总会会长。
加拿大是个移民国家，以前新、老华侨之间的联系不够密切。在新华侨眼里，老华侨有点古板；而在老华侨眼里，新华侨似乎只在意投资创业。于是，滕达便通过开展文化交流、乡情交流开始实现他的“新、老华侨亲密计划”。
为了解决场所困难，滕达和妻子慷慨拿出16万加元，在温哥华维多利亚街购买了一处会所，捐赠给同乡总会开展交流活动用。这个会馆也是中国新移民在加拿大买的第一个侨团会馆。开馆当天，滕达不仅请来当地政府官员，还特地向以老华侨为主的中华会馆发出热情邀请，一改以前新、老华侨间较少交流的局面。
现在，加拿大温州同乡总会有1300多名会员，而平时来这里参加活动的远不止这个数。通过大家的捐赠，同乡总会每年有5万至10万加元用于文化交流和公益事业。
2008年11月，同乡总会联合兄弟侨团成功组织了“中华情：亲情中华欢聚温哥华”大型演唱会的盛大演出，大腕巨星云集，观众达到1.2万人，成为北美地区里程碑式的文艺演出，受到各界好评，当地中文英文媒体都以极大篇幅进行了报道。加拿大总理哈珀、加拿大卑诗省省长金宝尔等在演唱会前分别发来贺信，高度评价此次演出对推进中加友好交往和加拿大多元文化发展具有重要意义。加拿大总理哈珀还派特别代表到达现场，带来了他的亲笔信，祝贺演出顺利。中央电视台几次在中国大陆、香港特区和海外播出录像，影响空前。
2009年10月13日，加拿大总理哈珀在温哥华主持召开关于“金融危机下的加拿大经济复苏对策”的圆桌会议，当天有10位来自日本、韩国、菲律宾、以色列等加拿大各族裔的代表应邀出席。由于滕达在加拿大华人中的影响力和在经济领域所作出的贡献，他作为10人中唯一的华人代表参加了会议并作了相关发言。会议结束后，哈珀总理拍着他的肩膀亲切地说：“谢谢您的建议！”接着第一个与他合影。
前不久，哈珀总理又和滕达在一起吃加拿大烧烤。这一次他们交流的不是工作上的事情，而是中加两国的饮食文化。哈珀总理听了滕达对中国饮食文化的介绍后，称赞他是“中加文化交流的使者”。
文化的力量让他走向成功
卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会会长、欧洲杭州联谊总会常务副会长朱培华，文质彬彬，看上去人很儒雅。他20来岁时就以总分第一名的成绩考上了上海音乐专科学校。
1988年，29岁的朱培华已是浙江省歌舞剧院创作室作曲家。然而，为了与先期出国的妻子团聚，他踏上了赴卢森堡的旅途。
原先想在欧洲继续做“音乐之梦”的朱培华，因口袋里仅剩50马克的现实不得不先想法子解决温饱问题。他一开始在一家餐馆里面做跑堂，端盘子。由于工作努力，受老板赏识，他当上了一家新开餐馆的总经理。
新餐馆的历练让朱培华很快掌握了这一行的诀窍，后来他自己开餐馆时，就把目标锁定为“卢森堡最好中式餐馆”。朱培华力求在传承中国饮食文化上下功夫，提供真正地道的中国菜。他还特意去烧制了两个2.5米高的青瓷大花瓶，一个彩绘卢森堡的阿道尔夫大桥和卢森堡大公馆，一个彩绘中国山水。这两个充满中卢风情的大花瓶成了一道亮丽的文化风景，许多客人来他的餐馆就餐有一个目的就是为了和大花瓶合影留念。朱培华靠开了个有中国文化特色的餐馆，挖到了赴卢森堡创业的第一桶金，此后他的事业如日中天。
2002年中卢建交30周年，卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会应运而生，朱培华当选为会长。他在成立大会上提出协会的宗旨和主要任务是：“努力促进卢森堡和中国的经济、文化合作交流。我们要将协会比喻成‘窗口’和‘桥梁’，希望中卢两国人民通过我们协会这扇‘窗’，更多地了解对方的经济、文化动态，更多地了解对方的民俗、民风；通过我们协会这座‘桥梁’，让两国人民能更多地开展文化、经济等方面的交流，取得可喜成绩。”
担任卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会会长后，朱培华在文化交流等领域作出了重大贡献。有一段时间，由于受西方媒体的不良宣传，卢森堡议会中有部分议员对中国产生了一些不正确的看法，朱培华决定通过文化交流的办法纠正他们的偏见。他自己出资邀请一些卢森堡议员进行了一次非官方的访华活动，亲自陪同他们在浙江、北京、上海等地考察，了解中国悠久的历史文化和当今繁荣的社会情况。访华回卢后，卢森堡议会顾问委员会主席、欧洲议会议员马塞·萨博尔写了一封信给中国驻卢森堡大使，信中写道：“我刚对你们国家做了一次私人访问，我意识到我们欧洲媒体对中国的某些宣传是不正确的，此次访问使我感受到了一个真实的中国，感受到了中国人民的幸福。非常感谢朱培华先生能给我们这样的一个机会了解中国，我们今后一定会把真实的中国介绍给更多的卢森堡人、欧洲人。”中国驻卢森堡大使对朱培华的做法给予高度评价。
多年来，朱培华带领文化交流协会会员们立足卢森堡这个多种文化交汇之地，采取开放办展、进家办学、外国人演奏中国乐曲等形式，着力传播中华优秀文化，特别是在美术、音乐、餐饮文化等交流方面做了有益的探索，受到社会各界广泛好评。2004年，在中国驻卢大使馆和国务院侨办的大力支持下，朱培华开办了卢森堡历史上第一所中文学校。办学的经费和场地，都是朱培华自己想办法解决的；一些嫁给当地人、在家作全职太太的中国女士义务担任中文学校的老师。目前，中文学校总共有80多个学生。学生们在校不仅学中华传统文化，还能够接触到很多诸如中国服饰、饮食等中国现代文化方面的新知识。谈到办学的初衷，朱培华感慨地说：“我们常常教育孩子要有中国情结，留住中国的根，但如果中国话都不会说了，把中国文化都丢了，那一切都是空谈。”如今看到那些原先一句中文都不会说的孩子们能背诵唐诗宋词，朱培华心中感到很欣慰。□
Zhejiang Entrepreneurs Act as Messengers of Cultural Exchanges
By Xu Zhongyou
The 1st World Zhejiang Entrepreneurs Convention was held from October 23 to 28th, 2011 in Hangzhou, the capital of eastern China’s coastal Zhejiang Province. The convention testified to a reputation the province has enjoyed since the late 1970s when the nation started reform and opening up to the outside world: Zhejiang has served as a paradise for the private sector and nowadays entrepreneurs of Zhejiang origin are everywhere across the world. They now stand as a symbol of a daring, down-to-earth and inspirational entrepreneurship. Many brilliant businesspeople of Zhejiang came to attend the 6-day gathering from home and abroad. Some of them actively serve as messengers of cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the World. The following are brief stories of three of them.
Zhuo Xuguang
Many people know of Mr. Zhuo Xuguang because of his West Lake Margaux Estate, patterned after the world famous Chateau Margaux in France. The estate is at 280 Santaishan on the West Lake. Mr. Zhuo is president of Chinese Business Chamber of France.
Zhuo was born in Gaogang Village, Qingtian, a county in southern Zhejiang Province, where migrating to foreign countries and making it overseas has been a long-standing tradition. The county is home to a large population of overseas Chinese. In 1988, Zhuo went to France to help his grandfather and his parents run the family business. It has boomed in his hands. After elected President of Chinese Business Chamber of France, he wished to promote cultural exchanges between China and France.
In May 2008, the chamber invited a number of Chinese Xiangsheng (crosstalk) artists to stage shows in France. Zhuo did all he could to ensure the success of the performances. Through his arrangements, the Chinese artists performed at the best theater in Paris; journalists from French mainstream media covered the event; a large number of French politicians, artists, scholars and leading citizens watched the shows at Zhuo’s invitation; Chinese businesspeople and students watched the shows. The visit was a huge success, warmly applauded in the mainstream media.
Thanks to this event, Jiang Kun and other crosstalk artists became Zhuo’s friends. When Zhuo launched his red wine business in Hangzhou, Jiang Kun and many crosstalk artists came to Hangzhou to attend the launching ceremony. Part of the West Lake Margaux Estate now doubles as a venue for Jiang Kun’s Art Friends to meet.
Teng Da
Teng Da, a native of Wenzhou in southern Zhejiang, moved to Canada in 1999 in search of career development. Now he operates his own investment company and works as CEO at a Canadian foundation specialized in tapping into business opportunities in Asia. In 2005, Wenzhou natives in Canada elected him to be director of Wenzhou Natives Association. Aware that Canada is a nation of immigrants and that there was a gap between the old generation of Chinese immigrants and the new, Teng decided to unite the two generations of Chinese immigrants by starting an affinity program.
He and his wife bought a house at Victoria Street in Vancouver and donated it as a venue for events and activities of the association. It was the first venue of the new generation of overseas Chinese in Canada. Teng Da invited many of Chinese residents of the old generation over on the launching day of the venue.
Nowadays, the Wenzhou Natives Association has more than 1,300 members and the number of visitors to the venue is much more. The association organizes a series of regular events and activities to promote cultural exchanges and public undertakings. In November 2008, the Wenzhou Natives Association and other overseas Chinese organizations jointly hosted a gala performance in Vancouver. About 12,000 people attended. It was described as a landmark gala in the history of Chinese community in the North America. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and then Premier of British Columbia Gordon Muir Campbell wrote congratulatory letters to mark the occasion. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s special envoy attended the premiere and expressed the premier’s personal regards. China Central Television, the largest television network of China, screened the footage of the gala on several channels for Chinese audiences on the mainland, in Hong Kong and overseas.
On October 13, 2009, a round table meeting was held in Vancouver in search of solutions for Canadian economic recovery in the economic crisis. Teng Da was invited as one of the ten representatives of the local ethnic communities to attend the meeting. Teng Da spoke at the meeting. After the meeting, Premier Harper slapped Teng on the back and thanked him for his good suggestion. They took a photo together.
Premier Harper and Teng met again not long ago for a Canadian barbecue. They did not meet to discuss business. They discussed Canadian and Chinese cuisines and food culture. After Teng gave a brief account of Chinese food culture, Premier Harper praised Teng as an envoy of Canadian-Chinese cultural exchanges.
Zhu Peihua
In 1988, 29-year-old Zhu Peihua resigned from Zhejiang Song and Dance Ensemble where he had been working as a composer and joined his wife studying in Luxemburg. He had dreamed of continuing his dream of music in Europe, but the reality of only 50 marks in his pocket spoke louder. He worked as a kitchen helper in a restaurant. He ran into difficulties in his first few days. One day he was severely reprimanded by the headwaiter for his failure to prepare a cup of orange juice well. He found it unbearable and demoralizing, but he soon became cool and understood that he needed to forget his past glory and dignity as a composer. With this new idea about himself and his future, he worked hard. His boss appreciated the capable Chinese and appointed him manager of a new restaurant. This job opened Zhu’s eyes to the secrets of the industry and gave him a thorough training.
When he started his own restaurant business, he aimed to build it into the best Chinese restaurant in Luxemburg. The restaurant offers authentic Chinese food. Zhu also had two 2.5-meter-tall celadon vases custom-built for his restaurant. One displays Bridge of Adolf and Grand Ducal, two major tourist attractions in Luxemburg, and the other shows a Chinese landscape. The two vases contribute a great deal to business volume. Some diners come just to take a photo with the vases. With this restaurant, Zhu Peihua got his first bucket of gold in Luxemburg. His business boomed.
Luxemburg-China Association for Economic and Cultural Exchanges came into being in 2002, marking the 30th anniversary of the founding of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Zhu Peihua was elected president of the association. In this position, Zhu has made significant contribution to the promotion of cultural exchanges between the two countries. Aware that some members of Luxemburg Parliament had incorrect understanding of China, Zhu invited them to pay an unofficial visit to China at his expenditure. Zhu accompanied them to visit Zhejiang, Beijing and Shanghai to see China’s history, modernization, and ongoing economic boom. The seeing-is-believing trip opened the eyes of these congress people. The Chinese Embassy in Luxemburg was highly complimentary of Zhu’s initiative.
In 2004, Zhu Peihua started a Chinese school, the first ever in the history of Luxemburg, with the support of the Chinese embassy and the Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs under the State Council of PRC. The teachers there are Chinese homemakers who married local residents of Luxemburg. At present, the school has 80 some students having access to knowledge of Chinese apparel, food, and lifestyle. Zhu’s purpose for such a school is straightforward: “We want our children to love China and maintain their Chinese roots. But if they can’t speak Chinese and know nothing about Chinese culture, they can do nothing about their Chinese roots.” Most of the children did not speak a Chinese word when they first came to the school, but now they can recite classic Chinese poems very fluently. Zhu Peihua is happy about the achievement the school has scored. □
姜昆等艺术家是他的好朋友
“上有天堂，下有苏杭。”在风光秀丽的杭州西子湖畔三台山景区280号，有一座装修和设计风格参照世界著名的“玛歌”红酒产区各大酒庄建筑风格的山庄——浙江玛歌西湖山庄。这个山庄的创办人，就是浙江籍的著名爱国侨领、法国华商会会长卓旭光先生。
听一家媒体的朋友介绍，2010年浙江玛歌西湖山庄开业时，著名相声演员姜昆、李金斗、戴志诚、李建华和哑剧演员王全和、王全利等文艺界明星专程来杭州祝贺。于是，我在大会间隙采访了卓先生。
卓旭光出生在著名的侨乡青田县温溪镇高岗村，1988年他前往法国帮爷爷和父母打理生意。经过多年的打拼，他不仅在生意上取得了突破，而且还当选法国华商会会长。经商之余，他很想在中法文化交流方面做点有益事情。
2008年5月初，由法国华商会与中国曲艺家协会联系，邀请到姜昆、牛群、石富宽、戴志诚等一批曲艺名家前往法国演出。
为了主办好这次演出活动，卓旭光跑前跑后，花费了许多心血。他在巴黎安排了最好的大剧院，请了一批法国主流媒体记者参与宣传报道，以扩大中国文化的影响；他热情邀请了法国及巴黎的一批政要、艺术家、文化学者和市民代表作为贵宾，观看演出；同时组织在法国的华侨、留学生等分批观看。由于组织有方，演出节目精彩，受到了中法观众的热烈欢迎。法国的主流媒体纷纷在主要版面和黄金时间给予重点报道，称赞“中国的文化太有魅力了，这次演出活动是一次很成功的中法文化交流活动”。
通过这次演出活动，卓旭光与姜昆等艺术家结成好友。2010年，姜昆听说卓旭光在杭州创办浙江玛歌西湖山庄，欣然将“姜昆艺友社”设在山庄内，并挥毫书赠了多幅书法作品为山庄补壁。这让卓旭光深受感动，他开展中法文化交流的积极性更高了，在中国和法国都收到了很好的效果。
海外舞台上热推中华文化
在首届世界浙商大会期间，笔者采访了中国华侨国际文化交流促进会副会长、世界温州人联谊总会副会长、加拿大华人社团联席会创会主席、加拿大中国工商联合会主席、加拿大温哥华文化中心荣誉主席、加拿大温州同乡总会荣誉会长滕达先生。采访前他先打开手提电脑，让我观看了两张照片，一张是他与加拿大总理哈珀的合影，另一张是他亲自操办的“中华情”演出活动照。
接着，滕达先生从电脑中找出一份资料给我看。
1999年，老家在浙江温州的滕达移居加拿大发展，经过多年的拼搏，他先后创办了加拿大金茂集团国际投资有限公司和加拿大新亚基金有限公司，分别担任董事长和总裁的职务，从事经济投资和财经方面的工作，事业有了快速的发展。2005年2月，他被推选为加拿大温州同乡总会会长。
加拿大是个移民国家，以前新、老华侨之间的联系不够密切。在新华侨眼里，老华侨有点古板；而在老华侨眼里，新华侨似乎只在意投资创业。于是，滕达便通过开展文化交流、乡情交流开始实现他的“新、老华侨亲密计划”。
为了解决场所困难，滕达和妻子慷慨拿出16万加元，在温哥华维多利亚街购买了一处会所，捐赠给同乡总会开展交流活动用。这个会馆也是中国新移民在加拿大买的第一个侨团会馆。开馆当天，滕达不仅请来当地政府官员，还特地向以老华侨为主的中华会馆发出热情邀请，一改以前新、老华侨间较少交流的局面。
现在，加拿大温州同乡总会有1300多名会员，而平时来这里参加活动的远不止这个数。通过大家的捐赠，同乡总会每年有5万至10万加元用于文化交流和公益事业。
2008年11月，同乡总会联合兄弟侨团成功组织了“中华情：亲情中华欢聚温哥华”大型演唱会的盛大演出，大腕巨星云集，观众达到1.2万人，成为北美地区里程碑式的文艺演出，受到各界好评，当地中文英文媒体都以极大篇幅进行了报道。加拿大总理哈珀、加拿大卑诗省省长金宝尔等在演唱会前分别发来贺信，高度评价此次演出对推进中加友好交往和加拿大多元文化发展具有重要意义。加拿大总理哈珀还派特别代表到达现场，带来了他的亲笔信，祝贺演出顺利。中央电视台几次在中国大陆、香港特区和海外播出录像，影响空前。
2009年10月13日，加拿大总理哈珀在温哥华主持召开关于“金融危机下的加拿大经济复苏对策”的圆桌会议，当天有10位来自日本、韩国、菲律宾、以色列等加拿大各族裔的代表应邀出席。由于滕达在加拿大华人中的影响力和在经济领域所作出的贡献，他作为10人中唯一的华人代表参加了会议并作了相关发言。会议结束后，哈珀总理拍着他的肩膀亲切地说：“谢谢您的建议！”接着第一个与他合影。
前不久，哈珀总理又和滕达在一起吃加拿大烧烤。这一次他们交流的不是工作上的事情，而是中加两国的饮食文化。哈珀总理听了滕达对中国饮食文化的介绍后，称赞他是“中加文化交流的使者”。
文化的力量让他走向成功
卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会会长、欧洲杭州联谊总会常务副会长朱培华，文质彬彬，看上去人很儒雅。他20来岁时就以总分第一名的成绩考上了上海音乐专科学校。
1988年，29岁的朱培华已是浙江省歌舞剧院创作室作曲家。然而，为了与先期出国的妻子团聚，他踏上了赴卢森堡的旅途。
原先想在欧洲继续做“音乐之梦”的朱培华，因口袋里仅剩50马克的现实不得不先想法子解决温饱问题。他一开始在一家餐馆里面做跑堂，端盘子。由于工作努力，受老板赏识，他当上了一家新开餐馆的总经理。
新餐馆的历练让朱培华很快掌握了这一行的诀窍，后来他自己开餐馆时，就把目标锁定为“卢森堡最好中式餐馆”。朱培华力求在传承中国饮食文化上下功夫，提供真正地道的中国菜。他还特意去烧制了两个2.5米高的青瓷大花瓶，一个彩绘卢森堡的阿道尔夫大桥和卢森堡大公馆，一个彩绘中国山水。这两个充满中卢风情的大花瓶成了一道亮丽的文化风景，许多客人来他的餐馆就餐有一个目的就是为了和大花瓶合影留念。朱培华靠开了个有中国文化特色的餐馆，挖到了赴卢森堡创业的第一桶金，此后他的事业如日中天。
2002年中卢建交30周年，卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会应运而生，朱培华当选为会长。他在成立大会上提出协会的宗旨和主要任务是：“努力促进卢森堡和中国的经济、文化合作交流。我们要将协会比喻成‘窗口’和‘桥梁’，希望中卢两国人民通过我们协会这扇‘窗’，更多地了解对方的经济、文化动态，更多地了解对方的民俗、民风；通过我们协会这座‘桥梁’，让两国人民能更多地开展文化、经济等方面的交流，取得可喜成绩。”
担任卢森堡—中国经济文化交流协会会长后，朱培华在文化交流等领域作出了重大贡献。有一段时间，由于受西方媒体的不良宣传，卢森堡议会中有部分议员对中国产生了一些不正确的看法，朱培华决定通过文化交流的办法纠正他们的偏见。他自己出资邀请一些卢森堡议员进行了一次非官方的访华活动，亲自陪同他们在浙江、北京、上海等地考察，了解中国悠久的历史文化和当今繁荣的社会情况。访华回卢后，卢森堡议会顾问委员会主席、欧洲议会议员马塞·萨博尔写了一封信给中国驻卢森堡大使，信中写道：“我刚对你们国家做了一次私人访问，我意识到我们欧洲媒体对中国的某些宣传是不正确的，此次访问使我感受到了一个真实的中国，感受到了中国人民的幸福。非常感谢朱培华先生能给我们这样的一个机会了解中国，我们今后一定会把真实的中国介绍给更多的卢森堡人、欧洲人。”中国驻卢森堡大使对朱培华的做法给予高度评价。
多年来，朱培华带领文化交流协会会员们立足卢森堡这个多种文化交汇之地，采取开放办展、进家办学、外国人演奏中国乐曲等形式，着力传播中华优秀文化，特别是在美术、音乐、餐饮文化等交流方面做了有益的探索，受到社会各界广泛好评。2004年，在中国驻卢大使馆和国务院侨办的大力支持下，朱培华开办了卢森堡历史上第一所中文学校。办学的经费和场地，都是朱培华自己想办法解决的；一些嫁给当地人、在家作全职太太的中国女士义务担任中文学校的老师。目前，中文学校总共有80多个学生。学生们在校不仅学中华传统文化，还能够接触到很多诸如中国服饰、饮食等中国现代文化方面的新知识。谈到办学的初衷，朱培华感慨地说：“我们常常教育孩子要有中国情结，留住中国的根，但如果中国话都不会说了，把中国文化都丢了，那一切都是空谈。”如今看到那些原先一句中文都不会说的孩子们能背诵唐诗宋词，朱培华心中感到很欣慰。□
Zhejiang Entrepreneurs Act as Messengers of Cultural Exchanges
By Xu Zhongyou
The 1st World Zhejiang Entrepreneurs Convention was held from October 23 to 28th, 2011 in Hangzhou, the capital of eastern China’s coastal Zhejiang Province. The convention testified to a reputation the province has enjoyed since the late 1970s when the nation started reform and opening up to the outside world: Zhejiang has served as a paradise for the private sector and nowadays entrepreneurs of Zhejiang origin are everywhere across the world. They now stand as a symbol of a daring, down-to-earth and inspirational entrepreneurship. Many brilliant businesspeople of Zhejiang came to attend the 6-day gathering from home and abroad. Some of them actively serve as messengers of cultural exchanges between China and the rest of the World. The following are brief stories of three of them.
Zhuo Xuguang
Many people know of Mr. Zhuo Xuguang because of his West Lake Margaux Estate, patterned after the world famous Chateau Margaux in France. The estate is at 280 Santaishan on the West Lake. Mr. Zhuo is president of Chinese Business Chamber of France.
Zhuo was born in Gaogang Village, Qingtian, a county in southern Zhejiang Province, where migrating to foreign countries and making it overseas has been a long-standing tradition. The county is home to a large population of overseas Chinese. In 1988, Zhuo went to France to help his grandfather and his parents run the family business. It has boomed in his hands. After elected President of Chinese Business Chamber of France, he wished to promote cultural exchanges between China and France.
In May 2008, the chamber invited a number of Chinese Xiangsheng (crosstalk) artists to stage shows in France. Zhuo did all he could to ensure the success of the performances. Through his arrangements, the Chinese artists performed at the best theater in Paris; journalists from French mainstream media covered the event; a large number of French politicians, artists, scholars and leading citizens watched the shows at Zhuo’s invitation; Chinese businesspeople and students watched the shows. The visit was a huge success, warmly applauded in the mainstream media.
Thanks to this event, Jiang Kun and other crosstalk artists became Zhuo’s friends. When Zhuo launched his red wine business in Hangzhou, Jiang Kun and many crosstalk artists came to Hangzhou to attend the launching ceremony. Part of the West Lake Margaux Estate now doubles as a venue for Jiang Kun’s Art Friends to meet.
Teng Da
Teng Da, a native of Wenzhou in southern Zhejiang, moved to Canada in 1999 in search of career development. Now he operates his own investment company and works as CEO at a Canadian foundation specialized in tapping into business opportunities in Asia. In 2005, Wenzhou natives in Canada elected him to be director of Wenzhou Natives Association. Aware that Canada is a nation of immigrants and that there was a gap between the old generation of Chinese immigrants and the new, Teng decided to unite the two generations of Chinese immigrants by starting an affinity program.
He and his wife bought a house at Victoria Street in Vancouver and donated it as a venue for events and activities of the association. It was the first venue of the new generation of overseas Chinese in Canada. Teng Da invited many of Chinese residents of the old generation over on the launching day of the venue.
Nowadays, the Wenzhou Natives Association has more than 1,300 members and the number of visitors to the venue is much more. The association organizes a series of regular events and activities to promote cultural exchanges and public undertakings. In November 2008, the Wenzhou Natives Association and other overseas Chinese organizations jointly hosted a gala performance in Vancouver. About 12,000 people attended. It was described as a landmark gala in the history of Chinese community in the North America. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and then Premier of British Columbia Gordon Muir Campbell wrote congratulatory letters to mark the occasion. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s special envoy attended the premiere and expressed the premier’s personal regards. China Central Television, the largest television network of China, screened the footage of the gala on several channels for Chinese audiences on the mainland, in Hong Kong and overseas.
On October 13, 2009, a round table meeting was held in Vancouver in search of solutions for Canadian economic recovery in the economic crisis. Teng Da was invited as one of the ten representatives of the local ethnic communities to attend the meeting. Teng Da spoke at the meeting. After the meeting, Premier Harper slapped Teng on the back and thanked him for his good suggestion. They took a photo together.
Premier Harper and Teng met again not long ago for a Canadian barbecue. They did not meet to discuss business. They discussed Canadian and Chinese cuisines and food culture. After Teng gave a brief account of Chinese food culture, Premier Harper praised Teng as an envoy of Canadian-Chinese cultural exchanges.
Zhu Peihua
In 1988, 29-year-old Zhu Peihua resigned from Zhejiang Song and Dance Ensemble where he had been working as a composer and joined his wife studying in Luxemburg. He had dreamed of continuing his dream of music in Europe, but the reality of only 50 marks in his pocket spoke louder. He worked as a kitchen helper in a restaurant. He ran into difficulties in his first few days. One day he was severely reprimanded by the headwaiter for his failure to prepare a cup of orange juice well. He found it unbearable and demoralizing, but he soon became cool and understood that he needed to forget his past glory and dignity as a composer. With this new idea about himself and his future, he worked hard. His boss appreciated the capable Chinese and appointed him manager of a new restaurant. This job opened Zhu’s eyes to the secrets of the industry and gave him a thorough training.
When he started his own restaurant business, he aimed to build it into the best Chinese restaurant in Luxemburg. The restaurant offers authentic Chinese food. Zhu also had two 2.5-meter-tall celadon vases custom-built for his restaurant. One displays Bridge of Adolf and Grand Ducal, two major tourist attractions in Luxemburg, and the other shows a Chinese landscape. The two vases contribute a great deal to business volume. Some diners come just to take a photo with the vases. With this restaurant, Zhu Peihua got his first bucket of gold in Luxemburg. His business boomed.
Luxemburg-China Association for Economic and Cultural Exchanges came into being in 2002, marking the 30th anniversary of the founding of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Zhu Peihua was elected president of the association. In this position, Zhu has made significant contribution to the promotion of cultural exchanges between the two countries. Aware that some members of Luxemburg Parliament had incorrect understanding of China, Zhu invited them to pay an unofficial visit to China at his expenditure. Zhu accompanied them to visit Zhejiang, Beijing and Shanghai to see China’s history, modernization, and ongoing economic boom. The seeing-is-believing trip opened the eyes of these congress people. The Chinese Embassy in Luxemburg was highly complimentary of Zhu’s initiative.
In 2004, Zhu Peihua started a Chinese school, the first ever in the history of Luxemburg, with the support of the Chinese embassy and the Office of Overseas Chinese Affairs under the State Council of PRC. The teachers there are Chinese homemakers who married local residents of Luxemburg. At present, the school has 80 some students having access to knowledge of Chinese apparel, food, and lifestyle. Zhu’s purpose for such a school is straightforward: “We want our children to love China and maintain their Chinese roots. But if they can’t speak Chinese and know nothing about Chinese culture, they can do nothing about their Chinese roots.” Most of the children did not speak a Chinese word when they first came to the school, but now they can recite classic Chinese poems very fluently. Zhu Peihua is happy about the achievement the school has scored. □