At the end of July, the official agreement on twinning the Jungfrau and Mount Huangshan was signed by a delegation headed by former Swiss Federal Councillor and UNO Ambassador Adolf Ogi. The signing took place in China, on Mount Huangshan.
Switzerland was represented at the ceremony by former Swiss Federal Councillor Adolf Ogi, Swiss Ambassador Dominique Dreyer and Hans Jakob, Swiss Consular General in Shanghai. Riccardo Gullotti, chairman of Jungfrau Railways, Walter Steuri, CEO and Urs Kessler, head of marketing & operations at Jungfrau Railways represented the Jungfraujoch – Top of Europe as the partner mountain. Interlaken was represented by Daniel Rüegsegger, vice-president of the municipality, Helmut Reichen, principal of Interlaken Grammar School and Beno Küng from Interlaken Tourism.
The link between the two mountains is a symbol of friendship between China and Switzerland, the Anhui Province and Canton Bern as well as the Huangshan and Jungfrau Regions. The Jungfrau and Huangshan mountains are both unique sightseeing attractions, one in Europe and one in Asia
Not just on paper
The signing of the partnership agreement marks the first step towards closer cultural exchange between the two regions. In the coming months, the general public will have the chance to see photographs of the Huangshan region in the exhibition area on the Jungfraujoch. In return, pictures of the Jungfrau Region will be displayed in China. A student exchange between Interlaken and Huangshan city and advertising spots on local TV stations are planned to follow. In addition, visitors to the “partner mountains” will be able to create a personal video-postcard at one of the special terminals and send it to friends via the official website at www.sistermountains.
Who is the new partner in China?
The extensive mountain-massif lies in the Anhui Province in eastern China. The province is considered to be one of the country’s most beautiful regions and is also one of the most up-and-coming economic zones in eastern China. It has a surface area of 139,000 km2 and a population of over 60 million.
Mount Huangshan lies in the south of Anhui and is one of China’s most famous excursion destinations. The region’s natural landscape is characterized by forests of granite pillars, a unique topographical feature, covered with pine trees up to the summits. Thanks to four stunning natural features: bizarre pines, weird rock shapes, seas of cloud and thermal springs, Mount Huangshan is described as one of China’s five natural wonders. In 1990, the area was accepted to the prestigious list of UNESCO World Heritage sites.
The region around Mount Huangshan covers an area of 154 km2 and boasts over 400 “landscape scenes” with countless cultural sightseeing attractions. The bizarre rocks and peaks, some towering 1800 metres into the sky, are among the highest mountains in eastern China. They are often shrouded in swirling seas of cloud, lending the landscape a special mystic ambience.
One of the summits of the Mount Huangshan massif can be reached by a modern aerial cableway and aerial gondola. The departure point is Huangshan city, a modern tourist centre with a well-developed hotel industry and infrastructure. Huangshan airport offers flights to Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and many other destinations. |