On March 16, Chinese Consul General in San Francisco Luo Linquan met with Kevin Hendricks, superintendent of San Francisco Maritime National Park, Robert Bleicher and Thomas Escher, chair and member of the board of the Park.
Consul General LUO expressed gratitude for what the Park has done for promoting the China-US cultural exchanges, saying that San Francisco Bay Area was the first place where early Chinese immigrants had settles. They built the American West in various areas and the duplicate of Chinese shrimp junk on display at the park was evidence.
This year marks the China-US Tourism Year, he said he expected more Chinese tourists to visit the area this year, which will help deepen the understanding and friendship between the two peoples as well as the realtionship between the two countires, Luo said.
Hendricks also praised the contribution of the early Chinese immigrants to the developement of the United States. Escher, also president of Red and White Fleet Cruises, said most of their customers were tourists from China and he would work with the Chinese Consulate in San Francisco to promote China-US cultural exchanges.