On Friday 6 June, Nottingham Confucius Institute welcomed over 40 staff, students and local residents for an evening at the Si Yuan Centre to explore China's revered "Four Gentlemen of Flowers" - the resilient plum blossom, elegant orchid, steadfast bamboo and noble chrysanthemum.
The evening blended language learning with cultural discovery through flower-themed quizzes and hands-on crafts. Student host Geng Yiming brought the flowers' rich symbolism to life, while the lively "Twelve Flower Gods" activity had participants introduce themselves as seasonal blooms in Mandarin.
Participants created delicate paper flowers and elegant dried-flower silk fans - perfect summer mementos. A heartwarming highlight brought everyone together in a multilingual chorus of ‘Happy Birthday’ for a special guest celebrating his 101st year.
This vibrant celebration showcased how cultural exchange can blossom through shared experience. Our event video can be viewed here.
Our next and final term event: "Mahjong & Chinese Board Games" will take place on 27 June. Register or find out more
