In Beijing, traces of a thousand-year era glimmer among the high rises, but Rodolfo Martinez, a student from Quebec's Concordia University, and his classmates almost missed it.

Starting in May, Martinez visited many of Beijing's modern sites during his three-month academic tour. His footprints cover Guomao, Sunlitun Village and 798 Art Zone – places which embody the capital's modernity and vitality.

Yet the Chinese history classes he took recently at Communication University of China, where Martinez and his Canadian classmates are living and learning, gave him a fresh view of the ancient country.

The series of lectures started with Chinese myths about the creation of the universe and human beings. Like the Bible, China has a creation story. In China's narrative, Pangu, the god who created the world, separated the sky from the earth, and Nuwa, the goddess who created humans, sacrificed her life for the peace of the world.

Having little education about the ancient oriental world, Martinez and his classmates enjoyed the lectures. Jacinthe Leveille, a classmate of Martinez, believes the lessons enabled them to gain a new perspective about China.

The lessons of Confucius and Taoism fascinated the students the most, Professor Bai Wengang said. One Confucius teaching stands out for the Canadian students: "To know what you know, and know what you do not – that is 'knowledge.'" Some students expressed interest in The Way and the Virtue – a book supposedly written by Laozi, a main figure in Taoism.

Bai gave three Chinese history lessons on a variety of topics, including ancient myths and the post-Qing Dynasty (1640-1911).

"Although my English is accented and not fluent, it doesn't hinder the students' understanding of the historic theories," Bai said. "We have a happy time together. They showed great interest in Chinese history."