Indonesian international students: "More people need to know more about China's history and culture"
2024-08-15
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Source: Overseas Network
China and Indonesia are both important developing countries and representatives of emerging economies. They have a profound traditional friendship and close and in-depth cooperation. In recent years, the two countries have achieved fruitful results in cultural cooperation, and many Indonesians have chosen to study in China. Chen Jiawei, Zhang Yongliang and Nan Ping from Indonesia are international students studying for a master's degree at Beijing Language and Culture University. They recently said in an interview with Overseas Network that they believe that with the development of China, more Indonesians will want to learn Chinese and understand Chinese culture.
“I went to the Forbidden City two or three times.”
Among the courses at Beijing Language and Culture University, there is a course called "Chinese Cultural Communication", which is widely praised by international students. International students learn Chinese culture in class and travel around China in their spare time. Many of them have become authentic China experts.
Chen Jiawei, an Indonesian student studying abroad. (Photo provided by the student)
Chen Jiawei recalled that she had been to Shanghai, Hangzhou, Chongqing, Xi'an, Inner Mongolia, Changsha, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and other places, and her favorite city was Beijing, because she had a special liking for Chinese history and culture. Although Beijing is developing rapidly now, the historical sites are still well preserved. Chen Jiawei has visited the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square, and the Great Wall, especially the Forbidden City, "I went there two or three times." Chen Jiawei said that in the future she plans to return to Indonesia to be a Chinese teacher, "China's history, culture, and Chinese language need more people to know."
Zhang Yongliang also left precious memories in many places in China. He cited the example of seeing many Miao costumes in Fenghuang Ancient Town. He liked this gorgeous costume very much and it reminded him of Indonesian national costumes. In Zhang Yongliang's view, these ethnic minority cultures in China are worth spreading internationally and need to be seen by more people. Zhang Yongliang's favorite Chinese cities are Chongqing and Chengdu. He said that when talking about Sichuan and Chongqing, it is natural to talk about food, and hot pot is just what he wants.
I have to read the People's Daily WeChat account at 8 o'clock every night
Studying and living in China requires listening, speaking, reading and writing in Chinese. Among the three international students, Nanping has studied Chinese for the shortest time, having studied for two years, but he is already very fluent. Nanping has passed the Level 5 Chinese Proficiency Test. He modestly said, "It's still a little lower than other students." He said that the scope of questions in the Chinese Proficiency Test includes Chinese history, Chinese living habits, Chinese culture and other aspects. When asked about the difficulty of the test, he smiled and said, "It's difficult! But I think the listening part is okay." In fact, Nanping's master's thesis was written on the topic of listening, exploring how to improve listening skills.
Chen Jiawei's fondness for Chinese history and culture originated from the Chinese TV series that her grandparents loved to watch when she was a child, especially the costumes in the costume dramas, which left a deep impression on her. Now she is learning Chinese, and TV dramas are also indispensable to her. She said that Chinese TV series are very popular, and Chinese actors such as Zhao Liying and Xu Kai are also very popular in Indonesia. By watching Chinese TV series, you can practice your listening skills, and by reading Chinese subtitles, you can also become familiar with the writing of Chinese characters.
Indonesian student Zhang Yongliang. (Photo provided by the author)
Zhang Yongliang has another "secret trick" to learn Chinese. He said that his teacher once introduced them to the "public account" function of WeChat. Every night at 8 o'clock, he would open the People's Daily WeChat public account to read "Night Reading". Through the heartwarming stories in the "Night Reading" column, he learned a lot about the lifestyle of the Chinese people and improved his language skills.
More and more Chinese companies are investing in Indonesia
In 2023, the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway in Indonesia was officially put into operation. As of July this year, the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway has transported more than 4 million passengers. The Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway, a "golden signboard" for the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" cooperation, carries Chinese wisdom and solutions, helps Indonesia accelerate its modernization, runs out of the "acceleration" of happiness for the Indonesian people, and writes a new chapter of win-win cooperation between China and Indonesia. With the deepening of China-Indonesia cooperation, for many young Indonesians, learning Chinese has a new place to use.
Chen Jiawei said that the news of the opening of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway received a great response in Indonesia at that time. "For us, this is our first high-speed railway. It is of great help to us Indonesians and is especially popular among us Indonesians." Chen Jiawei believes that more Indonesians now want to learn Chinese well because there are many Chinese multinational companies in Indonesia. In the future, there will be more cooperation between Indonesia and China.
Indonesian students studying in Nanping. (Photo by Lu Ningyuan/Overseas Network)
Nanping was previously the chairman of the Indonesian Students Association in Beijing. He not only often participated in the activities of the Indonesian Embassy in China to celebrate Indonesian culture and learn Chinese customs, but also held many events at BLCU. "We held a relatively large job fair and cooperated with many Chinese companies." Nanping said that more and more Chinese companies are investing in Indonesia, and they need Indonesian talents who can speak Chinese.
Producer/Wang Piyi
Planning and proofreading/Niu Ning
Copywriter/He Lu
Post-production and operation/Lu Ningyuan
Supported by China Internet Development Foundation China Positive Energy Network Communication Special Fund
