Armenian fulfills dream in Shandong

Nune is preparing coffee for the guests. Ju Chuanjiang/China Daily

"They told me they can't find a place to drink coffee and eat Russian food, so opening a coffee bar to serve Russians came into my mind," says Nune, who speaks fluent Russian.

With the help of a local investor, Nune's coffee bar was soon open for business, popular among Russians and domestic tourists, too. Now earning around 70,000 yuan a year, she moved her family to the urban area of Rongcheng and soon bought a car and laptop.

Nune's workers, mostly women who were laid off from previous jobs, make a good salary now.

Wang Rongqiao, a female worker who once had to take two weeks of sick leave, gave the boss a thumb's-up. "I unexpectedly got the whole month's salary and an extra allowance of 500 yuan from Nune," Wang says.

Boosted by the brisk business of the coffee bar, Nune opened a restaurant at Shi-dao port in 2006. She gets tips from her mother about Russian cooking via the Internet.

Now Nune has opened a new coffee bar at Licun village at Rongcheng's Haoyunjiao Holiday Resort.

"Such a coffee bar with foreign flavors injects vigor into our tourism sector," says Wang Hongwei, a publicity official at the resort.

Her twin daughters—Kamila and Luchiya—are Nune's pride and joy.

The 18-year-old sisters, who now study at Yantai Arts School, have won several big dancing prizes and made appearances in films.

"China has seen sound and fast development in recent years. I believe it's a good choice for them to develop in China," Nune says. "I'm very happy, and I love China. This is a great country," Nune says.