Training session on Haihe below Shangri-la Hotel. 2019. [Photo by Bruce Connolly/chinadaily.com.cn]

That evening event on the banks of the Haihe River between the Baoding and Daguangming Bridges was attended by senior representatives from the office of the Mayor of Tianjin, various civil dignitaries, leaders of both domestic and international business communities, plus large crowds of local citizens gathering along the embankments and on the bridges. The gala show marked the mid-way point of this prestigious occasion. To me it was all surely helping mark Tianjin's growth and emergence as a leading city in northern China.