The Confucius Classroom of The 138th Secondary School in Sofia Have Organised A Concert Named Celebrating the Year of the Dragon And The 75th Anniversary of The Establishment of Diplomatic Relations Between China And Bulgaria

On 28th March 2024, at the Chinese Cultural Centre in Sofia, the teachers and the students from the Confucius Classroom at the 138th Secondary School for Eastern and Western Languages in Sofia have organised a concert named Celebrating the Year of the Dragon and the 75th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Diplomatic Relations between China and Bulgaria. Mrs Wang Min - the Chargé d'affaires of the Embassy of China in Bulgaria, Mr Yang Tian -the Head of the Educational Affairs at the Embassy of China in Bulgaria, Mrs Margarita Gencheva, - a member of the Group for Friendship between Bulgaria and China at the Bulgarian National Assembly and a member of the Vazrazhdane Party, Mrs Radina Mladenova - deputy Headmistress of the 18th Secondary School in Sofia, and Mr Alexander Evtimov - Headmaster of the 138th Secondary School, have attended the concert. The guests of honour have included also Mr Nikolay Yalamov, - founder of the Aiga Chinese Language School, Mrs Olga Yalamova – Headmistress of the Aiga Chinese Language School, Mrs Neli Nanova - deputy Headmistress of the Aiga Chinese Language School, Mrs Aksinia Koleva – the Bulgarian director of the Confucius Institute in Sofia, Prof.Chen Ying, - the Chinese director of the Confucius Institute in Sofia, numerous teachers and students, and more than a hundred people from the local community who have gathered together to continue writing the chapter of friendship between China and Bulgaria.
At the opening ceremony, the Chargé d'affaires Mrs Wang Min, the member of the Parliament Mrs Margarita Gencheva and the school headmaster Mr Alexander Evtimov have delivered their speeches. Mrs Wang Min said that the 138th Secondary School has made commendable achievements in the Chinese language teaching. She has expressed her hope that the school will continue to contribute to the humanistic exchange and the cooperation between China and Bulgaria. Mrs Margarita Gencheva has read out a congratulatory letter from Mr Tsoncho Ganev, the deputy Spokesperson of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria and Chairman of the Group for Friendship between Bulgaria and China. Moreover, she has conveyed her best wishes for the relationship between the two countries to florish. Mr Alexander Evtimov has expressed his gratitude to the Confucius Institute in Sofia for their great support of the Confucius Classroom in terms of the teaching staff, the Chinese language teaching and cultural exchange, together with his hopes that the school will continue to maintain good cooperation with the Confucius Institute in Sofia.
The concert included songs, dances, quizzes, theatre plays and numerous other artistic formats through which the Bulgarian students have interpreted their own understanding and their love for the Chinese language and culture in their unique way. In addition to the performers from the 138th Secondary School, students from the Aiga Chinese Language School have also taken part in the performance. The beautiful singing and the Chinese traditional dances performed by students in traditional Chinese costumes have moved the audience deeply. The theatre play named Liang Shanbo And Zhu Yingtai – the Butterfly Lovers has led the event to its climax with its wonderful dialogues, changing scenes and dancing with fans. The event has been finalised by the song Friendship Forever performed by the teachers and the students, which song has expressed their good wishes for the long-lasting friendship between China and Bulgaria.
This event has been a vivid demonstration of the excellent teaching achievements of the Confucius Institute in Sofia, and has also provided a window for local people to perceive and understand China. The Confucius Institute in Sofia will continue to add bricks and mortar to the humanistic exchange and the cooperation between China and Bulgaria.
Confucius Institute in Sofia

Text: Liu Min
Photos: Liu Min
Editors: Chen Ying, Aksinia Koleva, Chen Chen
English translation: Maya Kostadinova

2 2 Picture 1. The guests of honour.

3 3 Picture 2. The speech of Mrs Wang Min - Chargé d'affaires of the Embassy of China in Bulgaria.

4 4 Picture 3. The congratulation letter read by Mrs Margarita Gencheva - a member of the Group for Friendship between Bulgaria and China at the Bulgarian National Assembly and a member of the Vazrazhdane Party.