Dongyue temple fair, also knows as Mount Tai temple fair, was derived from the religious sacrificial rites for the birthday of the ancient mythological figures---- Dongyue the Great and Bixiayuanjun, later, it gradually evolved into the emperors’ offering sacrifices to the heaven and earth in the past dynasties, the purpose of which was to pray for the country’s peace and prosperity. Now, it has been familiar to more and more people as a grand banquet showing the traditional culture and conducting the cultural exchange with other countries.

On April 14,2017,we went to Dai Temple to watch this grand occasion for the traditional culture on behalf of the teachers and students of International Education College of Taishan Medical University. As a foreign student who was invited to participate in this event,I have personally experienced the open and inclusive Mount Tai culture and appreciated the charm of the extensive and profound traditional culture of Mount Tai. The cultural blend and the collision of idea all make this experience become so special.

The sky was clear and bright with a gentle and pleasant breeze. We drive to the place of the temple fair----Dai Temple, which is a historic spot with dual accumulation of long history and profound culture. Before getting off we could catch a glimpse of this architecture through the bustling crowd and the folk activities of different styles .Below Zhengyang Gate, the plaques for Mount Tai temple fair stand tall and erect on both sides and the red lanterns hang high, which still foil the previous magnificent appearance of this ancient architecture. The we entered into the front door and came to the site of the temple fair. In the garden, the pine and cypress trees are high with very thick branches; they have gone through the vicissitudes of years and show the long history of this place. On both sides of the road, there were all kinds of folk performances; the shadow figures of Mount Tai which were either static or dynamic, the vivid painted sculptures and the lifelike scissor-cut of Mount Tai. All kinds of young and old people went to this temple to pray in an endless stream; before various performing sites, there were continuous cheers…At this moment, we could fully experience the extensive and profound traditional culture at Dongyue temple fair and the masses’ deep love for the diversified activities.

Of course, what I like best is the grand stage of Dongyue temple fair. The visitors could give spontaneous performances on the stage: there were vivid and powerful works of calligraphy, mild and fair-sounding folk songs, and the Chinese kungfu receiving constant cheers... We performed the dance of our country on behalf of the foreign students. To our surprise, this exotic dance was warmly welcomed by the crowd of onlookers, which let us feel the mutual tolerance between different cultures.

As soon approached ,we walked to the snack street together to taste the traditional flavor snacks. There were Mount Tai been jelly, sticks of sugar-coated haws, and the famous food of Mount Tai that I like best----pancakes wrapping green Chinese onion.

Through this Dongyue Temple Fair, we have deeply felt the open and inclusive Mount Tai culture and appreciated the charm of the traditional culture of Mount Tai. I hope that more and more foreigners can participate in this grand event to experience and learn the open and inclusive Mount Tai culture together.