The 2016 Visiting Program for Young Sinologists concluded on July 22, with a closing ceremony attended by Minister of Culture Luo Shugang and deputy dean of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Cai Fang.

During the past 20 days, 31 Sinologists from 26 countries conducted research and studied at several institutes in Beijing and travelled to Anhui province to study local culture and history.

Hosted by the China Ministry of Culture and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the program aims to provide a platform for young Sinologists to better understand China and meet scholars in the same areas.

Let's hear what some of the Sinologists have to say about what they learnt from the program.

Hannes Dekeyser (Belgium), programme Coordinator, European Institute for Asian Studies

"During the program, I got access to Tsinghua University. If I go there independently, it won't be very easy for me to knock on the door of famous professors like Hu Angang, and have a personal conversation. Another benefit from the trip for me was that I was able to meet people all around the world working on the similar issue. And it is good that Sinologists from the trip can exchange views and have different perspectives of China. Anhui, for foreign tourists, is less known than other parts of China, but I think it is something that should and could be visited more. I had a short but very positive impression. It's nice in the trip to meet people who have initial focus on Chinese language and culture, because they show to me that it is interesting, important and valuable to master the language."

"The program is very well organized. We had lectures, visited museums and tried local food, including Peking Duck. I especially enjoyed the lectures, because they were taught by very high-profile Chinese professors, such as Zhang Bo and Cao Wen. I had read a lot about them in Vietnam, but it was very different experience to listen to their lectures in person. We discussed lexicology, linguistics and Sinology. I think it was their rich experience that made the lessons very clear and interesting. During the lectures, we had Sinologists from different countries attending, so we could also learn from each other and exchange our experiences in studying and teaching Chinese. After English, Chinese is the second language that most college students in Vietnam select. As more Vietnamese learn Chinese, it is also important for us to improve our knowledge of China."

"The lectures we attended at the beginning were very informative and useful. I especially liked the lectures on China-US relations and China's 13th Five Year Plan. I am a Chinese language teacher. During the class, we not only study the language, but also talk about the latest happenings and policies in China. So I feel that being involved in this program will greatly help my professional life after I go back home. During the trip in Anhui, I climbed the Huang Mountain. Since we don't have such high mountains in Thailand, I was very impressed. It is so beautiful that I felt like I was in heaven. "

"This was really a good opportunity and I had very rich experience in Beijing and Anhui province, about the culture, the people and the food. I am very impressed by the culture in Anhui province. Before the trip, we also had lectures and practical experiences at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. It is really an experience to have practical practices and lectures combined in such an intensive trip."

"From the program, I learnt a lot of things that I wasn't aware of and didn't know about before about China. During the trip to Anhui, we visited Xidi village and Hongcun village. The ancient villages are beautiful and the best thing is the offsprings of the owners of the old houses are still living there. So we can say that the history of the villages is still alive, and will be carried on by the young people. On the academic side, it was a good opportunity to meet and exchange ideas with so many sinologists at one time."

"Because I am an academic, the best thing I liked about the trip was that I was able to study at Tsinghua University, and get so close to the Chinese educational system. By October, each of us will need to submit a paper about anything that's related to China, and I chose to write about Chinese Dream. I know the slogan was brought out by Chinese President Xi Jinping，and I saw that all the time from Chinese media. China is now one of the biggest and best countries in economics, and Egypt follows China and supports China."