Close neighbors

During his trip, Premier Li will also attend the 7th China-Japan-ROK leaders' meeting in Japan.

Ever since the normalization of Sino-Japan relations in 1972, the cultural exchanges have seen ups and downs but the people from the two countries are getting to know each other better.

The number of Chinese travelers in Japan in 2017 rose by 15 percent to over 7 million, with China leading all other nations in travel spending within the country. The Chinese travelers’ focus is also shifting from so-called “explosive buying sprees” to experiencing local culture.

"They are interested in traditional things or events happening on a particular day and place. They are interested in Japanese culture in the way that Europeans are," said Kei Nakajima, who wrote a book on China inbound tourism called "Why Wealthy Chinese Love Japan's Traditional Established Businesses – 54 Tips on China Inbound Tourism."

Japan received a record number of Chinese students in 2017, surpassing 100,000 for the first time, data from the Japan Student Services Organization showed. China has become Japan’s biggest source of international students.

Yamashita Tomohiro, a Japanese student living in Shanghai, is using his online popularity to promote the bilateral understanding of the two peoples.

He came to Shanghai without knowing any Chinese but now he runs an online comedy show with more than 3.5 million followers across various social platforms. Yamashita said he was surprised by the enthusiasm from young Chinese people about Japanese culture. “Many young Chinese have much deeper understandings of Japanese comics and anime than I do.”