Tacoma Mayor (second from left) sings with students from both Fuzhou and Tacoma on June 26. HU MEIDONG/CHINA DAILY

Flourishing exchanges

In addition to trade, educational exchanges have flourished between the sister cities, fostering long-lasting connections among young people in China and the U.S.

On Sept 23, 2015, during his first state visit to the U.S. as China's president, Xi returned to Tacoma. Lincoln High School was selected as the venue, partly because of the sister-city ties and the sister-school relationship between the school and the Affiliated High School of Fuzhou Institute of Education.

At the school, Xi spoke to students, brought a ping-pong table and books on China, and later sent a personal invitation for 100 students to visit China the following year.

"I feel incredibly lucky and grateful for being selected for that trip," said Rigel Adams, now 23, who was a member of the Lincoln High School group that traveled to China in 2016.

"We did so much in those days, meeting other Chinese students, visiting different schools and getting to truly experience Chinese culture. It was the experience of a lifetime. After I visited in 2016, I just fell in love with the people and the culture in China. Everyone here is caring and polite, and it's much more community-focused. It's very different from the U.S., and I like it."

Since that trip, Adams, who recently graduated from university with a bachelor's degree in science and economics, has been back to China six times and visited many Chinese cities.

"During those trips, I was able to build some personal as well as professional relationships. My hope is to continue expanding those relationships and maybe to one day (turn that) into a business relationship."

Since 2016, Lincoln High School has frequently arranged visits to China, and the Affiliated High School of Fuzhou Institute of Education has also sent students to attend summer camp exchange activities at Lincoln High School every year before the pandemic.