Swiss jumper Salome Lang took a deep breath and steadied herself as she calmly put the finishing touches on a Chinese fan. One stroke of a brush later, she held it in the air for all to see.

"It was a lot of fun, a new experience, but it was very difficult to draw like this." Lang said during a visit to the Chinese Culture Booth at the Youth Olympic Village in Nanjing where the 2nd Youth Olympic Games will open on Saturday.

"It is not a normal pen and it was not normal paper, it was very thin. But it was a lot of fun. It was cool to learn new things."

While the emphasis is on competition at the Games, there is more for the athletes to do than test their ability on the field of play.

There is a rich Culture and Education Program (CEP) featuring more than 50 activities for athletes to choose from.

As Lang learned the fine art of making a Chinese fan, an official from Russia was learning about the history of the Great Wall of China.

Meanwhile, about two dozen Youth Olympic Games participants were taking a class on nutrition and cooking in another building, while others watched an open-air show about yo-yo tricks.

"We just arrived and we have not had a chance to do a lot of activities, but we will try to see as many as possible," Lang said. "This is pretty cool and we're trying to meet as many people as we can."

Towering beach volleyballer Phillip Ayobami Akande of Nigeria can relate to what Lang was saying.

Akande and a friend wandered into the Chinese Culture Booth and were immediately surrounded by other athletes.

The young athletes speak different languages and eventually they got their questions across.

"It's fun to talk to people about their culture and they ask me about mine," Akande said. "They ask me about the way we dress, our traditional food. They ask about the weather and things like that."

Akande then recalled a conversation he had with a Canadian about snow, which is something the Nigerian has seen only in pictures and films.

"We do not have snow," he said.

Looking to his left, he saw a bright smile on Lang's face as she finished the Chinese fan. Endit

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