On the evening of February 21, 2026, the Kursaal Convention Center in San Marino was brilliantly lit and filled with guests. The "2026 Chinese New Year of the Horse Spring Festival Celebration," organized by the Confucius Institute at the University of San Marino, was held here grandly. Government officials from San Marino, friends from various sectors, and representatives of teachers and students from the Confucius Institute gathered together to celebrate the Spring Festival, reminisce about a decade of friendship, and discuss future development.
Ms. Barbara Terenzi, Chairperson of the Board of the Confucius Institute at the University of San Marino, extended sincere New Year's greetings to the guests in her speech. She reviewed the decade-long journey of the Confucius Institute of taking root locally and serving the community, expressing her commitment to deepening cultural exchanges with China with a more open and inclusive attitude. Matteo Ciacci, San Marino's Secretary of State for Territory and Environment, highly praised the significant role of the Confucius Institute in promoting bilateral cultural understanding and enhancing people-to-people bonds. Liu Qi, Director of the Political Office of the Chinese Embassy in Italy, attended the event and delivered a speech. In their respective speeches, the two Directors from China and San Marino of the Confucius Institute reviewed the educational achievements and proposed new work objectives.
The evening's program was wonderfully diverse, featuring martial arts performances, Sichuan Opera face-changing, traditional Han Chinese clothing displays, and traditional Chinese music performance, which repeatedly brought the atmosphere to a climax and vividly interpreted the contemporary meaning of the "dragon-horse spirit." A Chinese cultural experience exhibition area attracted guests who stopped by to engage and seek calligraphy blessings. A special ceremony was held to launch a commemorative publication marking the tenth anniversary of Confucius Institute, systematically reviewing the fruitful results achieved since its establishment in areas such as Chinese language teaching, cultural promotion, and people-to-people exchanges.
Standing at the new starting point of the "Horse Year," the Confucius Institute in San Marino, through a Spring Festival celebration full of "horse" power and vitality, looked back on its journey, paid tribute to the past, and issued a firm and powerful declaration for the future.
