The launch of direct flights between Shanghai and Athens constitutes a milestone as well as a strong incentive for enhancing travel flow from both sides, Tourism Minister, Olga Kefalogianni, said in a special event attended by the Ambassador of the People’s Republic of China to the Hellenic Republic, Xiao Junzheng, and the chairman of Juneyao Air, Wang Junjin.
Kefalogianni described the direct air connection between Shanghai and Athens as an important milestone for the ties between Greece and China.
The minister pointed out the intangible cultural and spiritual elements that connect two peoples in the course of their history, and made a broad reference to Nikos Kazantzakis, who loved and understood China and its culture, like few foreigners, but also who was loved in China to a point that the Chinese friends of his work called him “Greek Lu Xun”, from the pen name of perhaps the most important Chinese writer of the twentieth century, whom they call “Chinese Kazantzakis”.
The Minister of Tourism underlined that the meeting point of the Greek and Chinese spirit is summed up in Kazantzakis’ statement in his travel narrative about China: “Confucius and Socrates are two masks that cover the same face: the bright face of human logic.”
Kefalogianni referred to the cooperation plan agreed between the two countries in the field of tourism 11 years ago, adding that the start of direct flights from Shanghai to Athens will open a new chapter for friendship, understanding and cooperation and of course for the trips between Greece and China.
