Not long ago, in Xiangyang, Hubei Province, students from the Hungarian Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School started a "familiar and unfamiliar" cultural journey: learn about the beautiful scenery, food and technological development of Xiangyang; Play volleyball with Chinese students; Although thousands of kilometers away from China, students in the Hungarian Chinese bilingual school have loved Chinese and Chinese culture since childhood.
△ The Hungarian students had friendly exchanges with the 36th middle school students in Xiangyang.
In Budapest, the capital of Hungary, Hungarian Chinese bilingual schools are widely known. The school is located on the bank of the Danube River and was founded in September 2004. It is the only public full-time school in Central and Eastern Europe that uses Chinese and the language of the country where it is located.
Over the years, the "degree" of Hungarian Chinese bilingual schools has become very popular, even "one is hard to find". In 2019, more than 90 students signed up, and only 27 of them successfully enrolled.
In the minds of many local students, "learning Chinese is such a beautiful thing".
"Little white rabbit is white and white, and his ears stand up..." In 2011, Hu Lingyue, a student of Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School who was in grade one, participated in the Chinese reading contest organized by the school. As she spoke, she performed, which left a deep impression on the judges.
The notebook is full of notes, and she writes two more compositions every week than other students, and asks the Chinese teacher to comment... In November 2022, Hu Lingyue, with more than ten years of efforts, achieved good results in the Advanced Chinese College Entrance Examination.
△ Hu Lingyue (first from the left) and Song Zhixiao (second from the right) from the Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School learned Chinese tea culture.
Song Zhixiao, who studied in the Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School, likes watching Chinese TV dramas and Chinese culture. She can recite some lines in the play, and sometimes she can find corresponding Chinese original works to read. Song Zhixiao also gained a lot through his efforts both inside and outside the classroom.
On the eve of the Spring Festival in 2023, Hu Lingyue and Song Zhixiao, on behalf of all the students of the university, sent a letter to President Xi Jinping and his wife Professor Peng Liyuan, saying New Year greetings according to Chinese customs, telling their feelings of learning Chinese at school for 12 years, and expressing their desire to go to China to study in universities and make contributions to the friendship between Hungary and China in the future.
Soon after, they received a reply from President Xi Jinping.
"I appreciate your persistence in learning Chinese and your determination to contribute to China Hungary friendship." In his reply, President Xi Jinping encouraged, "You are welcome to go to China to study in universities after graduating from high school. I also hope that more and more Hungarian teenagers will like Chinese and learn Chinese, have a chance to visit China, learn more about China and its history and culture today, and strive to be ambassadors for the inheritance and development of China Hungary friendship."
△ Paintings by students of Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School
In the letter, President Xi also mentioned the exchange with teachers and students in the Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School in 2009.
In October 2009, Xi Jinping, the then Vice President of the People's Republic of China, visited the Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School during his visit to Hungary. Since then, President Xi Jinping has forged deep friendship with the teachers and students here.
"At that time, the weather was cool, and President Xi was afraid that the children would catch cold, so he specially instructed them to hurry back to the room. He always smiled at the children, and talked with them kindly about poems and nursery rhymes." Speaking of President Xi Jinping's visit more than ten years ago, the Hungarian headmaster Eldai Susanna still remembered vividly.
At the beginning of the establishment of the Hungarian Chinese Bilingual School, there were only 87 students in 4 grades. At that time, most of the students' parents were Chinese who worked and lived in Hungary. In 2023, the number of students in this school will be more than 6 times that at the beginning of its establishment, reaching more than 530, most of whom are Hungarian native speakers.
One of the important reasons for the popularity of "degree" is the "Chinese fever" and "China fever" that continue to rise in Hungary.
As President Xi Jinping said in his letter, both China and Hungary have a long history and splendid culture. The two peoples have traditionally been friendly and people to people and cultural exchanges have become increasingly close.
In recent years, Hungarians have become increasingly interested in learning Chinese and understanding Chinese culture. Chinese has been incorporated into the Hungarian national education system. Teenagers can choose Chinese as their first foreign language to take the entrance examination in primary and secondary school. At present, Hungary has five Confucius Institutes, which have trained a large number of Chinese professionals.
△ In July 2023, a delegation of teachers and students from Hungary Hungary Chinese Bilingual School came to Jiangsu to participate in the "Splendid Jiangsu" youth exchange project.
The Hungarian Chinese bilingual school is favored by the local people, which also stems from the increasingly close cooperation and exchanges between the two countries. Some Hungarian parents choose to send their children to Hungarian Chinese bilingual schools to learn Chinese based on their development prospects because they have business relations with China.
Under the strategic leadership of the leaders of the two countries, China Hungary relations have developed rapidly, and the joint construction of the "Belt and Road" cooperation has yielded fruitful results.
In February this year, President Xi Jinping sent a message to congratulate Shuyuk on his election as President of Hungary. President Xi pointed out that I attach great importance to the development of China Hungary relations and would like to work with President Shuyuk to continue the traditional friendship between the two peoples, deepen political mutual trust and exchanges and cooperation in various fields, promote high-quality cooperation on the "Belt and Road", and lead China Hungary comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level.
Hungary is a good friend and partner of mutual trust and win-win cooperation with China. Friendship and cooperation have always been the theme of the development of China Hungary relations.
This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Hungary. President Xi Jinping is about to make his first state visit to Hungary, which will release a positive signal to further promote the development of bilateral relations. Looking forward to the future, China and Hungary will continue to be true friends who support each other, fellow travelers who develop and prosper, and good partners who know each other.
Supervised by Geng Zhimin
Producer | Xinglai
Chief Editor | Ning Li Li
Written by Cheng Yu
Vision | Jiangyuhang
