At Zhengyang Bookstore, Nick (left), an international student from Guinea, and Tang Yihong, an international student from Turkmenistan, show off their first book at the bookstore (pictured on April 21).
"Please take it, welcome again," Nick from Guinea smiled as he packed the sealed book and handed it to the reader.
Nick studied at Beijing Jiaotong University, where he and Fellow Turkmenistan student Tang Yihong worked as international volunteers at the Beijing Zhengyang Bookstore.
Beijing Zhengyang Bookstore mainly deals in literature and books on the history and culture of old Beijing, and it is located in the Courtyard of the Wansong Old Man Pagoda, which was built in the Yuan Dynasty and is the only existing brick pagoda with dense eaves in Beijing. In April 2014, Beijing Xicheng District and Zhengyang Bookstore jointly built Wansong Old People's Pagoda courtyard into a non-profit public reading space - "Beijing Brick Reading Space", which has become a frequent place for people who love the history and culture of old Beijing. In order to facilitate foreign readers, the bookstore recruited Tang Yihong and Nick, who are studying in Beijing, as volunteers.
The first time the two arrived at Zhengyang Bookstore, they were attracted by the environment and book collection here. Tang Yihong said that the first time she came, she held a book about Beijing's ancient architecture in her hand, and was surrounded by an ancient pagoda that was nearly 800 years old. "The environment is very quiet and will give you the feeling of wanting to read a book." Nick said.
"They can read books here, help foreign customers find books, and more importantly, they can contact ordinary Beijing citizens and understand the history and culture of Beijing." I also hope that they can use their language advantages to better introduce Beijing to foreign countries. "Zhengyang Bookstore "treasurer" Cui Yong said.
Photo by Ju Huanzong, Xinhua News Agency
Readers visit in front of Zhengyang Bookstore (photo taken on April 21).
At Zhengyang Bookstore, Tang Yihong (left), an international student from Turkmenistan, communicates with a young reader (pictured on April 21).
Readers and tourists visit the courtyard at the Zhengyang Bookstore (pictured on April 21).
At Zhengyang Bookstore, Nick (left), an international student from Guinea, packs a book for a reader (pictured on April 21).
Inside the courtyard of Zhengyang Bookstore, Cui Yong (left), the "treasurer" of the bookstore, introduces the company's featured books to Nick (center), an international student from Guinea, and Tang Yihong, an international student from Turkmenistan, on April 21.
At Zhengyang Bookstore, Nick (right), an international student from Guinea, looks for books with readers (pictured on April 21).
At Zhengyang Bookstore, Nick (left), an international student from Guinea, packs and hands readers a book stamped with the book's book stamp (pictured on April 21).
Tang Yihong (left), an international student from Turkmenistan, communicates with a young reader at Zhengyang Bookstore on April 21.
At Zhengyang Bookstore, Nick, an international student from Guinea, flips through books (pictured on April 21).
Readers flip through books at Zhengyang Bookstore (photo taken on April 21).
Source: Xinhua Net