3In the afternoon of April 8, the Haishu District Parent-child Kite Festival in 2023 with the theme of "Flying Paper Kites to Express Love and Enjoying the Intangible Cultural Heritage" kicked off at the Liangzhu Cultural Park. Various and colorful kites in shapes of goldfish, butterflies, sand swallows and so on were floating in the sky, attracting citizens and tourists to stop and watch, adding a unique romantic flavor in spring.

Kites originated during the Spring and Autumn Period and boast a history of over 2,000 years to this day. During the Song Dynasty, kite flying became a popular outdoor activity among people.

This parent-child kite festival is divided into four stages: kite making skill experience, kite exhibition, creative kite selection, and "busy flying paper kites in the east wind". More than 100 parent-child families signed up to participate.

In the class teaching intangible cultural heritage kite making skills, Hu Jinwei, the third generation inheritor of Ningbo paper kite making skills, elaborated on kites from aspects such as the history, classification, and cultural connotations and so on, providing children with a vivid experience of intangible cultural heritage. Rolling the skeleton and drawing the shape, children either sat or lied down in the warm spring sun, unleashing their imagination on the grass and making unique kites by hand.

When the kite is ready, of course it needs to be flown! Accompanied by the spring breeze, each family cooperates with each other, sometimes running with the wind and sometimes standing while stretching string, making their happiness and dreams fly into the sky through kites. Kites of various forms, such as anime characters and cute animals, danced all over the sky, like "elves" flying freely in the blue sky and white clouds, thus becoming a charming scenery in spring, Children all laughed happily.

"I made a rocket kite with a red launcher. I hope it can soar like a rocket of our country." A 9-year-old Du Yehao finished his exclusive kite and couldn't wait to run. After several failures, he also summarized his own kite-flying experience. The string should not be released too long at once, but bit by bit. "My kite would surely fly very high!"

Not only did the children have a good time, but 500 kites were specially prepared onsite and distributed for free to citizens, who were invited to participate and enjoy the warmth of spring and the joy of flying dreams.

"In spring, we hold the Haishu District Parent-child Kite Festival, hoping that children can immerse themselves in the charm of intangible cultural heritage." Ye Xian, Deputy Director of the Haishu District Cultural Museum, said that a series of colorful intangible cultural heritage experience activities will be held for the next step, allowing more people to participate.