While many Chinese travel half a world to study language, science and technology in Western countries, others have found a place to learn the essence of exotic Asian cultures without leaving their home country.

Nearly 500 students are learning Southeast Asian languages and cultures at the foreign languages department of the Guangxi Institute for Nationalities in Nanning, capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in southern China

Students here have easy access to live radio broadcasts, newspapers and magazines from Southeast Asian countries and often hold discussions with their teachers, some of whom native speakers.

"I'm here to study Lao. It's not a very popular language but sure has great potential," said Liu Yue, an undergraduate at the institute. "In fact, Lao speakers enjoy many job opportunities these days."

Instead of feeling inferior to learners of more widely spoken foreign languages such as English or French, Liu said she feels rather "proud and useful."

"Some of our teachers were well-known statesmen in these countries and they have helped us gain more insight into their culture and history," she said.

The institute also teaches Vietnamese, Thai and Cambodian. The Ministry of Education opened its foreign languages department in 2001 as a base for Southeast Asian language studies. Many of its graduates are playing a leading role in foreign affairs, journalism, international trade, tourism, customs and public security.

Wei Huimin, a tour guide with a travel service based in Nanning, said she has benefited greatly from her major in Vietnamese.

Wei has been a tour guide since she graduated from the institute in 2001. "All the Vietnamese-speaking guides in China have a tight schedule because so many Vietnamese are coming to China nowadays," she said.

Meanwhile, Vietnam is also in need of Chinese-speaking guides, said Wei, who worked as a part-time guide when she studied at a Vietnamese university in her junior year.

According to Ye Zongbo, an official with the school board, most foreign language students at the institute are sent abroad in their third year to acquire more first-hand knowledge about the language and culture they study.

"We plan to add Indonesian, Malay and Burmese to our curriculum and set up branches in some Southeast Asian countries to help locals learn Chinese," said Ye.

In an effort to boost cooperation with countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), China has stepped up the training of professionals who are expected to speak their languages and bridge the gaps in trade, economic and cultural exchanges with these countries.

Yunnan University for the Nationalities in the southwestern China's Yunnan Province is another base for Southeast Asian language studies. It offers courses in Thai, Vietnamese, Burmese and Lao.

"Such training will provide high-caliber human resources to bolster trade, economic and cultural ties between China and the ASEAN countries now and in the future," said Peng Hui, professor of Cambodian with Beijing Foreign Studies University.

(Xinhua News Agency May 9, 2004)