A grand, one-month tourist festival will be held from September, 28 to October, 28 in which the essence of the Heluo culture in Luoyang city of central China's Henan Province and the sceneries in the region will be showed and introduced to public.

Deputy mayor of Luoyang city Guo Congbin made the announcement on Thursday at a press conference.

He said the festival held this year aimed to be different from previous years both in form and content. There are ten events included in the festival.

One of the striking parts is the initial issue of the stamp Luoshen Appraisal Painting (luo shen fu), or the Painting of Goddess of Luo. A month-long, world-scale ritual will be held afterwards to commemorate Guanyu, a main character in the classic novel, the Story of the Three Kingdoms, who were noted by people as an image of loyalty and courage.

An international seminar on the study of scholars Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi of the Song Dynasty will also be held. Then there is a ceremony of celebrating the returning of the relics from Longmen cave in the region.

Guo disclosed at the press conference that the festival was held at a time that covered the National Day holidays, a booming time for domestic travels. At this travel peak time, all scenic spots in Luoyang, however, will not raise ticket entrance fees. In addition, tourists taking a trip to Luoyang by air will be compensated with 50 yuan each person.

At the press conference, Ma Pizhong from the State Post Bureau briefed the designing of the Luoshen Appraisal Painting stamp.

(Chinanews.cn September 9, 2005)