This year was the first Chinese Lunar New Year that Taiwan resident Kang Yungming had ever spent on the Chinese mainland. He found himself in Fuzhou, Fujian province, a major host of people and enterprises from the island.

"I wanted to experience the traditional culture here," Kang said, noting that the holiday — also known as Spring Festival — is the most important traditional festival for Chinese people.

Kang is a former rugby coach at Hsinchu Municipal Hsiangshan High School in Taiwan. In November, he made a bold decision to resign from that stable teaching job and start a business on the mainland. He came in January to his first choice — Fuzhou.

"I learned that Fujian is building a demonstration zone for cross-Strait integrated development, and I believe that the various support policies it offers will make our life and work more convenient," Kang said.

Although Spring Festival in Fuzhou was Kang's first on the mainland, it gave him a sense of belonging. He arrived in Fuzhou on Jan 16 and quickly applied to stay in a local apartment with other people from Taiwan.

He added that he was delighted to obtain a residence permit for Fuzhou within a week of his arrival.