HANOI, Vietnam－Faith and trust will connect hearts of people from different countries for a better world, and the Chinese language and culture can help facilitate that connection, a Vietnamese student said.

"Studying foreign languages, including Chinese, and bolstering cultural exchanges will help speed up construction of a better world," Military Science Academy student Luu Thi Bich Hang said on Saturday after topping the final Northern and Central Vietnam round of the 18th "Chinese Bridge", an annual Chinese proficiency competition for foreign college students.

At the competition, themed "One World, One Family" and held by the Confucius Institute Headquarters and the Chinese Embassy in Vietnam, the sophomore student of the Hanoi-based academy's Chinese Department outperformed 18 other finalists from 17 universities in terms of language skills, presentations about Chinese culture and development as well as about parenthood, traditional music performance, and knowledge of Chinese culture, society, economy and politics.

Hang said she studied English first, then started learning Chinese when she was a middle school student, she saw many youths studying the language, which can help them connect with people from different cultures and secure good jobs.

Hang said that after graduation, she wants to become a highly qualified interpreter of Chinese, so that she can make contributions to the fine friendship between Vietnam and China.

Hang said she likes using castanets, a musical instrument consisting of two small pieces of wood or bamboo tied together by strings and knocked against each other in the hand to make sound.

XINHUA