About 900 foreign students and teachers of Chinese origin visited the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre on Wednesday.

About 900 foreign students and teachers of Chinese origin visit the Memorial Hall for the Victims of the Nanjing Massacre on Wednesday. [Photo by Cang Wei/chinadaily.com.cn]?

The students, who come from 16 countries and regions, read historical material on the hall's walls,?viewed the mass grave and presented flowers in memory of the victims.

Zheng Tingting, a young woman from Madrid, said she was astonished when she visited the massacre memorial hall.

"I knew nothing about the Nanjing Massacre when I was in Spain," she said. "I think it's quite meaningful to know the facts about the massacre."

The students and teachers will go to 11 cities in East China's Jiangsu province in the next seven days to visit places of interest and learn about local culture.

They are attending a summer camp organized by the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council, the cultural department of Jiangsu province and the provincial Overseas Chinese Affairs Office.

Xu Jinrong, vice chairman of the provincial Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said that he hopes the students and teachers will learn more about Chinese culture after attending the summer camp and share that information with their friends when they go back home.