At 33 years old, Percy Akuetteh from Ghana cuts quite a striking figure when he speaks in fluent Mandarin Chinese and even the local dialect when giving lectures or hanging out with his students at the Wenzhou-Kean University in east China's Zhejiang Province.
Akuetteh, whose Chinese name is Ai Pengda, came to Wenzhou Medical University to pursue his studies in clinical medicine in 2010. After his Phd graduation, he decided to stay in the city and became a bioscience teacher at Wenzhou-Kean University.
Akuetteh is now not only fluent in Putonghua, but can also speak the Wenzhou dialect with ease, even though he has only started learning one of the hardest dialects in China three years ago.
"I find the Wenzhou dialect very hard. Many other Chinese dialects I know of are somehow similar to Putonghua. So, I can guess what people are saying. However, the Wenzhou dialect is nothing like Putonghua," said Akuetteh.
Akuetteh's lectures are popular with the students due to his teaching approach.
"When he gives a lecture, he is meticulous and rigorous. But off the class, he is also quite a casual person. He offers very joyful and relaxing company. We find him not only a nice teacher, but also a good friend," said Gao Yunchong, a student of Wenzhou-Kean University.
"He is especially good at using role-play or debate to let students know various opinions from different people and scientists. I think it's a really good opportunity for scholars from different countries to learn and conduct scientific research cooperation with each other. He serves as a bridge for such opportunity," said Yang Yixin, deputy director on academic affairs of Wenzhou-Kean University.
The overseas student-turned-college lecturer is enjoying his life with his Chinese wife and daughter in Wenzhou.
Young Ghanaian enjoy life, work in Wenzhou
Chinese cities, towns and villages are putting on dazzling light and lantern shows, staging distinctive folk customs performances, and holding festive mooncake banquets in celebration of the Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Tuesday.
The Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the most important festivals in Chinese culture. It falls on the 15th day of the eighth month on the Chinese lunar calendar and dates back more than a millennium. As a festival in honor of the moon and harvest, families reunite on the occasion to admire the bright full moon, light lanterns, and share the holiday pastry of mooncakes.
In the ancient city of Kaifeng of central China's Henan Province and Jinzhou City of northeast China's Liaoning Province, popular tourist attractions and landmarks are bathed in lights, promising a mesmerizing nighttime experience for local residents and tourists alike.
Beijing's famous Beihai Park, a public park and former imperial garden, is staging performances themed around bianzhong, or Chinese chime bells which has a history of over 2,000 years.
In tourist towns and villages of Yunnan Province in the southwest, Zhejiang Province in th east and Guangdong Province in the south, lively folk and dragon dances are gathering numerous locals and tourists to join in the festivities.
Audiences are enjoying a poetry recitation show in Hefei City, east China's Anhui Province, and a symphony in Zunyi City, southwest China's Guizhou Province, respectively.
This year, Suining City in southwest China's Sichuan Province and Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in the northwest, have both prepared giant freshly made mooncakes enough to treat hundreds of people at a same time. And in a village of the southwestern Chongqing Municipality, people have prepared their own mooncakes on a flour ground from their newly harvested red sorghum.
"We are filled with the joy of harvest during the merry traditional festival. The festive mood is really nice," said Liu Ya, a local of Jiangjun Village in Chongqing's Bishan District.
Elsewhere, villages in Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, are also celebrating their harvest of red pepper by drying them on the roofs. And another village in the eastern province of Shandong has recently held a large banquet for local households to share.
Outside the mainland, colorful lanterns are also dotting the various landmarks, streets and alleyways of Hong Kong and Macao, adding to the festive joy.
Celebrations held across China to mark traditional Mid-Autumn Festival
