Standing just a couple of blocks from the U.S. Capitol, a group of Peruvian highlanders hold a traditional blessing ceremony, performed since before Columbus discovered the New World and re-created at the national mall last Friday for the annual Smithsonian Folklife Festival.

As a cultural expression of the national history and real life, folk culture gradually went into people's everyday life. With the whole nation's feelings, it highlights a country's soft power. Furthermore, it is also the most concentrated expression of national spirit.