Liu Wei, a teacher, taught the Chinese language in Italy for seven years. Her Italian husband, Alberto Casartelli, is enthusiastic about Chinese culture.

Casartelli joined Tianjin Foreign Studies University, as an international teacher, more than a year ago. The couple relocated from Milan to north China's Tianjin Municipality, with their then-one-year-old son, in December 2022. Liu believes she shoulders the responsibility of telling China's stories and spreading Chinese culture to the world. Casartelli, meanwhile, has a great interest in learning more about China, an Oriental country with more than 5,000 years of history and civilization. 

Liu noted Casartelli had visited China, for the first time, about 11 years prior to their family moving to Tianjin. What was his original impression of China? "I found this country very appealing. It has a harmonious combination between the old and the modern, which is reflected by the country's history, arts, music, poetry and philosophy. I was particularly impressed by Chinese people's hospitality," Casartelli says. He visited China again about a year later, and at that time he met Liu, in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province. They fell in love and eventually married.

"Cross-culture is an indispensible part of our family life. We share with each other different habits in diet, lifestyle and things alike," Liu explains. It is key, she adds, for a transnational couple to have mutual respect, understanding and inclusiveness. Despite having been in love for more than a decade, Liu and Casartelli still like to learn the language and culture of each other's home country. In addition, they have composed songs together, to reveal the friendship between China and Italy. 

Casartelli is popular among his students. Why? Besides working as a teacher, he is a singer and songwriter. He writes songs in both Chinese and Italian, and he obtains inspiration from traditional Chinese culture and ancient stories when composing his works. 

Casartelli has performed on China Central Television (CCTV, China's national television broadcaster). One of his songs, Gli Amanti Farfalla (Butterfly Lovers), was written based on his understanding of an ancient Chinese tale about Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai, whose love tragedy is considered by many to be the Chinese version of Romeo and Juliet. 

In early 2020, Casartelli wrote a song in Chinese, entitled Our Struggle Together, to encourage people, around the world, to fight the COVID-19 pandemic. He cited the inspirational words — "fighting with a pen" — written by Chinese author Lu Xun (1881-1936). 

"Music has been my greatest passion since I was a child, and it is indeed a part of my life. Music has no borders, so I think it represents a perfect 'bridge' to bring the Italian and Chinese cultures together," Casartelli has said. "I don't lack energy. I have focused my will on bringing China and Italy closer, both as a teacher and as a musician." 

Wen Ji, one of Casartelli's students, says Casartelli is "a very learned professor." Wen says the classes are interactive, and adds Casartelli is keen to have his students express their ideas. "We are more like friends. He has promised to teach me how to write a song," Wen adds. 

Prior to the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, Casartelli composed a bilingual song, Pass on Strength, to extend his best wishes for China's successful hosting of the Winter Olympics. 

"For me, the Winter Olympics symbolized China, and in fact, the whole world was embarking on a new journey of walking out of the shadow caused by the pandemic. I thought I ought to write a song to record the remarkable moment. Meanwhile, the song was also for my hometown, Milan, which will host the 2026 Winter Olympics in collaboration with another Italian city, Cortina d'Ampezzo," Casartelli explains. 

Now living in a community with a shared future, Liu says more convenient and frequent communications, worldwide, have provided greater opportunities for Chinese to bring their glorious culture to the world. As a transnational family, Liu believes it is her and her husband's duty to help build a "bridge" to enhance cross-cultural, people-to-people exchanges.

For Casartelli, Tianjin is his home away from home. He has composed a song, In a Place Named Tianjin, with his students. Although he is tens of thousands of miles away from Milan, Casartelli enjoys living with his warm family in Tianjin — an open and inclusive city that embraces cultures from both East and West.

Photos from Interviewees

(Women of China English Monthly February 2024)