Tasting the Red Dragon

Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia, a Central European country which has in 2016 received an award for a Green Destination. The city, which is symbolized by a green dragon, is already well-visited by tourists from all over the globe, including the Chinese. Playing on the symbol of a dragon, which is not only an appealing image of Ljubljana, but also an idea used throughout the Chinese culture in various legends, myths, folklore and feng-shui, we would like to establish a connection between the two cultures (one local and the other global) and put it into a well-known European tourist location at the time of the worldwide celebrated Chinese Lantern Festival. By focusing on the visual, culinary and artistic experiences, the main purpose of our event “Tasting the Red Dragon” in the scope of “2018 EU-China Tourism Year” will be in illuminating various city landmarks in the color of red. Especially appealing to the eye would be the illumination of the Ljubljana Castle, which is seen from various positions near the downtown and old town. On these spots tourists and citizens will be able to taste dishes prepared by top Slovenian chefs, who will present their version of Chinese delicacies. For a better inclusion of the tourists with locals, we will also invite Slovenian and Chinese artists to show off their works related to Chinese culture and promote connections between Slovenes and the Chinese. Regarding the latter, there is already a connection between Ljubljana and the city of Chengdu, established in 1981. We believe these events could promote not only closer relationships between the citizens of the two cities, but could also transfer to the intra-state level.