The city of Nanyang, Henan province got its culture dept to ask some artists to put on a show, on Tomb-sweeping Day, April 5, for the people of nearby Xichuan county, who had to leave their hometown to make way for China's large south-north water diversion project but returned for a reunion.

And, in spite of the drizzle, the site at the foot of South Hill was bustling with 1,200 people from the Danjiangkou Reservoir area, who came back from their new homes in Qinghai, Hubei, and Henan provinces to join the locals for a celebration and to thank them for their sacrifice.

The government got the Ministry of Culture to get artists from the PLA Arts Academy, China Railway Art Troupe, and other organizations to lend a hand with songs, dances, conjuring, comedy and short sketches. And, when Wan Shanhong sang the song, "Homesick moments", the migrants in the audience were clearly moved.

Afterwards, the people visited a Migrant Monument and the Wall of Commemoration in the park.

On hand for the ceremony were Yu Youjun, former deputy director of the South-North Water Diversion office, Ming Wenjun, deputy director of the Culture Ministry Arts Department, Yang Liping, director-general of Henan's culture dept, Sun Peng, its deputy director-general, and Zhang Shengqi and He Xuemin, Nanyang city leaders.

The water diversion project is meant to shift some water resources from China's longest river, the Yangtze, to the drought-prone north, including Beijing and Tianjin.