How the friendship hotel spans friendship between two countries

The Beijing Friendship Hotel. [Photo provided by the Beijing Friendship Hotel]

This year marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia. Over the past decades, a historical hotel in Beijing has become an important part of the Sino-Russian friendship.

Russian enginner Konstantin Silin (middle) with his daughter Yelena (front) in Beijing Friendship Hotel in 1950s. [Photo provided by the Beijing Friendship Hotel]

In an old photograph from the 1950s, Russian engineer Konstantin Silin smiles with his family members in the landmark Beijing Friendship Hotel.

Zhang Jingpeng is the director of food and beverage with the hotel. Having been employed there for more than thirty years, he is very familiar with the story behind the picture.

"Silin was the chief designer of the first bridge built on the Wuhan section of the Yangtze River. President Xi Jinping once paid a visit to Silin's daughter during one of his past visits to Russia. The bridge is one project that Silin was particularly proud of when he was alive. The image of the bridge is on now Silin's tombstone. I think one thing that Russians have in common with Chinese is that they also attach great importance to friendship."

Russian enginner Konstantin Silin and his daughter Yelena in Beijing Friendship Hotel. [Photo provided by the Beijing Friendship Hotel]

Silin was sent by the former Soviet Union in the summer of 1954 to help the country to fix crumbling bridges and to build new ones. And the Silin family were among the first group of Russian expats who came to China and lived in the Beijing Friendship Hotel, which at that time was called the "Western Guest House".

Founded in 1954, the hotel was built to host foreign expatriates in China at that time. Many among them were Russian.

Li Mingjun is the former director general of the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs. He wrote this in his memoirs:

"At the time, more than 3,000 people from the Soviet Union and other East European countries, including professionals and their family members, were residing at the Beijing Friendship Hotel. We did everything we could to try to make their life easier and happier. There were regular buses that took them to shopping centers in the city. We organized it to where they could watch films, enjoy art performances, and go on picnics. We provided sufficient services in medical care, food, photographing, etc. We encouraged them to learn Chinese while at the same time they taught us Russian. We taught them how to cook Chinese dishes and asked them to show us how to make Russian food. We worked with them to build a few kindergartens so as to facilitate friendship building between Chinese and Russian kids. Beijing Friendship Hotel was just like a Russian community at the time."

Silin returned to Russia after the bridge was built in 1957, and since then, he and his family members continue to sustain close relations with China. Over the next few decades, the Silin family came back to China several times, and the Beijing Friendship Hotel was where they stayed, considering it their "the second home".

How the friendship hotel span Russian President Vladimir Putin was awarded an honorary doctorate at Beijing Friendship Hotel on April 26th, 2019. [Photo: VCG]

Decades afterwards, the Beijing Friendship Hotel still plays a crucial role in holding national banquets, and the country's important foreign affairs activities. On April 26th of this year, President Xi Jinping held talks with President Vladimir Putin of Russia at the Beijing Friendship Hotel.

Zhang Jingpeng recalls that day.

"We served three Russian-styled course meals to President Xi Jinping and President Putin. One was tomato soup. The second was grilled fish. And the third was beef. The reason why we chose grilled fish has an interesting story to it. It was actually Xi's father, a former senior official, who gave our hotel its name when it was established in the 1950s. When Xi was a kid, his father once took him to the hotel for a lunch, and during that lunch they had grilled fish. Xi is said to have a very good memory about the taste of the fish. In order to re-create the taste that Xi had as a kid, we contacted a retired chef. The old chef then offered a lot of advice to existing chefs."

The Russian Restaurant of Beijing Friendship Hotel. [Photo provided by Beijing Friendship Hotel]

The hotel officially opened to public in late 1980s. Since then, it has been attracting travelers from all over the world to experience the classic Chinese architectural elegance and pleasurable views, while many local citizens come to enjoy western food, especially Russian cuisine.

Xiao Qing is the PR manager of the hotel.

"Many local Chinese people like eating Russian cuisine here. Some of whom had memories of dining here in the past old days, so they came here with their families for nostalgic reasons. After the reform and opening-up, many people are enjoying western food culture and living a better life than they were before ; therefore we have more and more local customers nowadays. I think it's a good thing."

Sergei is the executive chef of the hotel restaurant. The Russian expat says he enjoys working in China with his Chinese colleagues.

"China is unique in my eyes. As an individual, I love China. I think cultural exchange between China and Russia is interesting. This is a large hotel. To some extent, I think the hotel can even give people a feeling that you would have when looking at the palaces in St.Petersburg. People working at the hotel are decent, professional, and hard-working. There are high-quality, comprehensive services and food at the hotel. I love to work at the hotel. I am proud to be part of the team.

Sergei says he believes the collective memory between the people from two countries will never be forgotten. Seventy years have passed since the two countries established diplomatic relations, and now later generations are being encouraged to embrace each other's culture, and pass this traditional friendship on like their forefathers.

(Written by Lu Chang. Yangyong voices the story.)