A Thai Princess has released a pictorial album in Bangkok today.
The album records the Princess' train journey in her own words
along China's Qinghai and Tibet. A launch ceremony was held to mark
this occasion because it symbolizes an ongoing and intimate
bilateral relationship mutually enjoyed by the nations of Thailand
and China.
The pictorial album, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn's Visit
to Qinghai and Tibet, was conceived and published by the
Beijing-based China International Publishing Group (CIPG). The
volume honors the goodwill and good deeds of Thai Princess Maha
Chakri Sirindhorn and specifically memorializes her 2007 journey to
Tibet – her 24th visit to China.
In attendance at the launch ceremony, the Princess recounted
some of the highlights of her visit, including traversing the
Qinghai-Tibet Plateau via the recently completed Qinghai-Tibet
Railway (QTR) – now one year in operation.
Principal attendees also included Cai Mingzhao, Vice Minister of
China's State Council Information Office and CIPG President; Zhang
Jiuhuan, the Chinese Ambassador to Thailand; diplomatic envoys from
other countries to Thailand; well-known personages from the world
of Thai culture and religion; and high-profile Chinese nationals
residing in Thailand.?
The ceremony was jointly sponsored by China's State Council
Information Office, the Embassy of the People's Republic of China
in the Kingdom of Thailand, CIPG, and the Thailand-based Nan Mee
Co., Ltd.
Thai Princess Maha Chakri
Sirindhorn (R) and Cai Mingzhao, Vice Minister of China's State
Council Information Office and CIPG President, visit the
book?booth to see her new pictorial album on display during
the cermony,? Bangkok, November 14, 2007.
During the Princess's April 2007 travels through Qinghai and
Tibet, a reporter and a photographer with the CIPG's subsidiary
magazine publication, China Pictorial, accompanied the official
entourage. For posterity, recording in word and image the goodwill
tour and personable cultural exchange, production of the
high-quality volume was timed to complete upon occasion of the 32nd
anniversary of the formal establishment of Sino-Thai diplomatic
relations, and upon the first anniversary of the QTR commencing
operations.
In following the Princess's journey via the QTR, the colorful
pages also offer a vivid view into Tibet's fascinating history,
colorful culture, unique customs and remarkable scenery. Further
described are particulars of the remarkable feat of engineering and
development necessary to create the 1,956-kilometer railway, now
known to many as the "Road to Heaven".
Cai Mingzhao, Vice Minister
of China's State Council Information Office and CIPG President,
gives speech at the book launch ceremony, Bangkok, November 14,
2007.
It is the world highest railway. Beginning in Xining, the
capital of Qinghai Province, the railed pathway leads to Lhasa, the
capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region. The line reaches its
highest point at the Tanggula Mountains, at 5,072 meters, higher
than any other line in the world.
Perhaps the most sentimentally rich scene shared within the
volume is the Princess's happily emotional meeting in Tibet's
capital of Lhasa with a group of Tibetan students, whom she
sponsors and supports.?
Also exhibited at the ceremony were photographs the Princess
personally shot during her visit to Qinghai and Tibet.?
During the ceremonial proceedings, upon presenting the Princess
with the volume and additional souvenirs of her trip, Vice Minister
Cai Mingzhao said: "Also intended as a token of friendship between
China and Thailand, this album is symbolic of the real and ever
stronger friendship that exists between our two nations."
Vice Minister Cai Mingzhao
presents the Princess with the volume and additional souvenirs of
her trip during the ceremonial proceedings, Bangkok, November 14,
2007.
Since 1981 to this date, Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn has
experienced 24 separate journeys through China, traveling to many
regions, provinces and municipalities. By extensively recording in
writing those travel experiences, including her personal insights
into and impressions of the nation and the people, the Princess has
become known as something of a Sinologue. Formally recognizing her
well-known expertise in things Chinese, as well as her dedicated
research on Chinese culture and history, in recent years the
Chinese government presented the Princess with the "Chinese
Language Culture Friendship Award," and the "Understanding and
Friendship International Literature Award."
One of the largest publishing concerns in China, the CIPG acts
as an administering umbrella organization for nine book publishing
houses and five periodical publishing houses. Each year three
thousand diverse volumes and 24 periodicals in 20 languages are
published and distributed to more than 100 countries and regions.
Nearly 30 websites in 10 languages are operated by the CIPG, and
among these is www.h5a3.com, one of the
best-known news portal sites in the world.
(China.org.cn November 14, 2007)
