In recently years, the rapidly-developing China has been attracting more foreigners from all over the world. Foreign students studying in China, as a special group, have been increasing too. In 2011, the total amount of foreign students studying in China exceeded 290,000 and they came from 194 countries and regions. During their study in China, they obverse China with their sharp eyes and experience China with their sincere hearts.

Recording the beauty of China

A woman wearing traditional Tibetan clothes walking in a field of flowers, high buildings with bright lights standing beside the Huangpu River at night, the National Grand Theater under the sky of stars on the water surface with colorful lights..... The people who shot these "beautiful sceneries of China" photos are all foreign students studying in China. "When the local woman was passing by, I caught the moment. I think the combination of the woman leading a yak and the background of a field of flowers was extremely beautiful," said Zhang Bei'er, a grade two Malaysian student studying in the Department of Psychology at Peking University. She said that she always recalls the vigorous scenery and those hardworking local people, every time when she sees the photo. Therefore, she named the picture "Vigor - Living."

Foreigners' interests in China have a long history. In the 18th century, a "China wind" once blew all over Europe and foreigners started imaging what the ancient China looked like by looking at pictures in China traveling journals. After the Opium War, many European photographers went to China and shot many photos reflecting China's suffering and fighting and these photos evoked wide repercussions in Europe. In 1972, an Italian film director Michelangelo Antonioni shot the documentary "China" which attracted global attention once again.

Nowadays, photographers and film directors who introduce China to the world have greatly increased. As China is communicating more with other countries, more foreigners have also come to China, using their cameras to record beautiful natural landscapes and folk customs of China's rural and urban areas, and experiencing the great change of China's living conditions and daily lives.

"When my grandma told me about my great-grandpa's traveling experience in China, I had already had the wish that I would personally visit China someday." An Austrian student studying in China An Ming told the reporter that her great-grandfather once visited China in 1920s.

Now, her long-cherished wish has come true. The blond-hair girl has visited a lot of places of China. "I know that there was the 10,000-kilometer Long March in China, but the total distance that I have traveled in China has exceeded 10,000 kilometers," said An proudly.

An Ming said that she used to think that China is just like the famous picture of "Qingming Festival by the Riverside" portrayed. But further exploration unveiled the mysteries surrounding this ancient country. "When teachers of Peking University recited the classic poetry to us, I was surprised to discover that some lines had been deeply ingrained in me. An example is the Chinese-style sorrow in the "Yu Mei Ren" by Li Yu."

"My grandmother told me that compared with the turbulence and backwardness 100 years ago, China today is playing an increasingly important role in the world. A growing number of foreign students come to China to pursue their studies," An Ming said.

An Ming, who is about to finish her undergraduate career, has been admitted by the School of International Studies at Peking University, and will pursue postgraduate studies in the next term. "I'm eager to know more about China's politics and economy and serve as the messenger in the international exchanges in the future," she said.

"Early promise provides a gateway to tacit understanding, and I have been in love with this place." This is a variant of the song "Welcome to Beijing" used by a Russian student Ke Xin in her article "People from the Big World Are All Friends".

Ke Xin is in the undergraduate class of 2010 in the College of Chinese Language and Culture at Nankai University. The friendship with Chinese friends during her school career was truly memorable. Receiving birthday gifts from Chinese friends for the first time, exchanging hometown delicacies with her landlord, rehearsing the Chinese program with the aid of teachers and classmates all exposed her to Chinese warmth and kindness.

According to Guan Shijie, professor of the School of Journalism and Communication, Peking University, the foreign observation of China will be carried out in an unconventional manner which will lead to discovery of elements unnoticeable to us, such as the Chinese behaviors.

Unlike the old cursory study, the foreigners, while watching China, begin to pay more attention to where the Chinese culture and other cultures familiar to them overlap.

"This is a welcomed trend. Change of perspective suggests that China's image is no longer dominated by antiquity and mystery only. Rather, today's China appears to be more trustworthy and approachable. This indicates the national image has improved," Guan Shijie said.

Facing a trustworthy and approachable China, a South Korean student Zhao Yinjing expressed the intention to settle down here. "I want to wake up every morning in her arms, basking in her warmth and enthusiasm."

While those who are close to the Chinese culture enjoys, others far away are coming. According to Gong Wenyang, professor of the School of Journalism and Communication, Peking University, the "Chinese warmth" -- the "common divisor" of various cultures, is attracting more and more foreign friends, and creating China's new international image.����