A group of more than 20 press officials and journalists from Asian and European countries paid a visit to Zibo, East China's Shandong province on July 1-2 to explore the city's time-honored ceramics industry and "cuju" culture.

Press officials and journalists from Afghanistan, Palestine, the Philippines, Lebanon, Turkey, Uzbekistan, Iraq and other countries and regions visited the city's several ceramics and colored glaze enterprise as well as the football museum.

Cuju, literally translating to "kick ball," is an ancient iteration of the world's favorite sport of football and, according to multiple historical records, it was first played as public entertainment in Linzi, a district of Zibo, before later being used for military fitness training. The ball was made of four pieces of animal hide, stitched together and filled with furs.

In 2004, Linzi was designated by FIFA as the wellspring of football and the true home of "the beautiful game."

Zibo, hailed as China's "capital of ceramics", is well-known for its production and export of porcelain and colored glaze products. Many porcelain producers here have specially invited foreign designers or designed their products by combining Chinese and other elements so as to satisfy the needs of customers from different countries.

The event was part of the "Tell Shandong stories to the world – Eurasian press officials and journalists' tour of Shandong", which was jointly organized by the China International Publishing Group and the information office of Shandong provincial government.

The foreign media group will visit the cities of Jinan, Zibo, Weifang and Qingdao in six days to get a better understanding of the province's long history, rich culture, unique customs and new achievements Shandong has been constructed into a competitive powerhouse in the new era.

Press officials and journalists from Asian and European countries pose for group photo during their trip to Linzi Football Museum on July 2 in Zibo, Shandong province. [Photo/sdchina.com]

Members of the foreign media group carefully listen to how cuju evolved and became popular in ancient China at the Linzi Football Museum on July 2 in Zibo, Shandong province. [Photo/sdchina.com]

Foreign journalists experience the sports of "cuju", an ancient Chinese style of soccer ball, at the Linzi Football Museum on July 2 in Zibo, Shandong province. [Photo/sdchina.com]