Exceptional beauty

Soren Link, the mayor of Duisburg, reminisced about his childhood visits to Yingqu Garden.

"Many people in Germany are familiar with this Chinese garden and recognize its exceptional beauty, using it as a means to learn about Chinese culture," he stated.

During a visit to Wuhan in March, he encountered three workers who had been involved in constructing Yingqu Garden. Each of them was presented with a cup bearing the Duisburg logo as a token of appreciation. Link expressed gratitude for their journey to Germany and conveyed his desire for the enduring friendship between Duisburg and Wuhan.

Hu Songbing, general manager of the garden construction company linked to the Wuhan Landscape and Ecology Group, said that the garden has been damaged in some places due to aging. Thus, a few years ago, Duisburg expressed a desire for Wuhan's assistance in restoring the deteriorating sections of the Yingqu Garden. Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, Wuhan packaged and dispatched 40 metric tons of ancient garden-building materials to Germany through the China-Europe Railway Express. Through three video conferences and 43 email correspondences, Wuhan supported German technicians in accomplishing the repair and refurbishment tasks.