Students find life in China to their liking

Many young Vietnamese have childhood memories similar to those of the Chinese post-80s and post-90s generations.

Dang Viet Hung, a graduate of National Economics University in Hanoi, Vietnam, says he watched The Journey to the West TV series as a boy.

Now 25 and a graduate student at the School of Economics and Management at Beihang University, Dang prepared with fellow foreign students for the 4th International Culture Night on Nov 11. At a warmup event for the night, he sang the theme song of his favorite Chinese TV series.

He began studying Mandarin with a Chinese language institute in February 2014 and before that would read novels translated from Chinese.

“These novels are from an online literature site called Qidian. I learned about city life in China by reading some urban fiction.”

Hung said that before he came to China last year, he tried to imagine how splendid the Great Wall and the Imperial Palace were, and now, he has been to see them several times.

Xiaopin, a type of comedy skit is another Chinese element that appealed to him.

“My language teacher asked us to imitate the actors and stage a xiaopin called Star Struck that was produced by Mahua FunAge, which I found very interesting,” he said.

Hung said his parents tried to persuade him not to go to China because they worried about whether he could adjust to the culture or stay safe.

For Le Thi Thanh Loc, a Chinese major who graduated from the University of Da Nang, the decision to study in China was met more favorably by her family members.

“My father likes Chinese history a lot. When I was a little girl, he told me such stories as Three Moves by Mencius’ Mother and The Battle of Red Cliff,” she said.

Le says she was attracted by the glamour in traditional Chinese culture and the modern lifestyle in China’s burgeoning economy. She is pursuing a master’s degree in teaching Chinese to foreign language speakers at the Beijing Institute of Technology.

She was surprised to see mobile payments so widespread in China.

“At first, I couldn’t understand why my Chinese peers told me that they couldn’t live without their smartphones,” she giggled. “I find myself in the same situation now.”

Le’s BIT classmate Vo Thi Hang says her high school homeroom teacher suggested she study Chinese to help her stand out at job fairs. However, for her, Chinese cuisine, especially dumplings, is the main allure of China.

Vo says she often gluts herself on Chinese delicacies with her Chinese friends.

“I find Chinese are far friendlier than I imagined,” she said. “Le and I failed to get seat tickets when we traveled from Guangxi to Beijing by train. We were frustrated we would have to stand for 20 hours. Some Chinese passengers started chatting with us. We told them about Vietnam, and they explained Chinese customs for me and even shared seats with us.”