Members of a Chinese tour group pose in front of the Statue of Liberty in New York, the United States, on June 18, 2008. The tour group from Shanghai in east China is one of the first batch of six organized Chinese tour groups arriving in the U.S. on June 17-18.

(CCTV 06-19-2008 13:37)Members of the first Chinese tour group to visit the US have started their sightseeing trip. They visited landmarktourist sites in Washington D.C. on Wednesday, including the Lincoln Memorial and the US Capitol. They say the first-day of the tour was a good start, and they're looking forward to the remaining 10-day trip.

One tourist said "My mood is as good as the gorgeous weather here. All of us feel very happy. We want to see as much as we can to learn about the US. We also hope that we can bring those good things back to China."

Another tourist said "It's a trip to learn about history. It's not been very long since the US was founded. But its development has been fast. There must be some reasons behind it. I want to learn about the factors of progress the US has achieved by seeing how locals live and work."

Another tourist said "I've taken a lot of photos. People here are nice. I've just asked a group of children to help take pictures of us. I think it's a very good bridge. There's no boundaries between tourism. Our relationship can be drawn closer through travel."