German journalists enjoy an acrobatic show during the welcome dinner. [Photo/chinanews.com]

A dozen journalists from German media, including the German Broadcasting Association, Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen, Le Monde, and the Nuremberg Newspaper, took a tour of Hunan province to explore the region's Huxiang culture and learn more about local innovation.

The event was sponsored by the Information Office of Hunan Provincial People's Government and the Foreign Affairs (Overseas Chinese Affairs) Office of Hunan Provincial People's Government. The tour itself was conducted by the Hunan Branch of China News Service (CNS).

The journalists took part in many activities and got to experience Hunan embroidery and porcelain, enjoy Hunan tea and interview Yuan Longping, China's "Father of Hybrid Rice".

The event will serve as a warm up to the Hunan Culture Festival in Dusseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany from Oct 29 to Nov 1, which will feature a series of art shows, cultural lectures, tourism promotion and other Hunan cultural activities.

Germany is currently Hunan's largest trading partner in Europe. German-funded enterprises, such as Bosch, Volkswagen and Siemens, have settled in Hunan, while Hunan enterprises, including Sany, Zoomlion and Times New Material, have also invested in factories in Germany. The two sides have expanded cooperation in culture, tourism, science and technology, environmental protection and other areas in recent years.

German journalists appreciate Hunan embroidery works. [Photo by Yang Huafeng/chinanews.com]

German journalists learn to make Hunan embroidery. [Photo/chinanews.com]