BUDAPEST/BEIJING,  May 8 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yue, deputy principal and Chinese teacher at the  Hungarian-Chinese Bilingual School, said Chinese President Xi Jinping's  reply to a letter from students of the Hungarian-Chinese bilingual  school greatly inspired students. More of them now have a stronger  enthusiasm to learn Chinese and to study in China.

Erneszt  Sandor Durand, a 12th-grade student of the school, has been to many  Chinese cities such as Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Beijing. As China's  importance in the world economy is increasing, so is the importance of  learning Chinese, he said, adding that he plans to further his studies  at universities in Beijing in the future.

Dorina  Inges, also a student of the school, said she is quite fascinated with  the Chinese culture. She can play guzheng, a traditional Chinese musical  instrument, and dance traditional Chinese folk dances.

The  growing popularity of the Chinese language and culture among the  Hungarians also contributes to the school's continuous development over  the past two decades. Initially, most students were from Chinese  families living and working in Hungary. Currently, the school has 12  grades and 20 classes with more than 530 students, with the majority  being native Hungarians.

"The  bilingual school far exceeds traditional economic, cooperative and  other types of relations," former Hungarian Prime Minister Peter  Medgyessy told Xinhua. "It actually encompasses the opportunity for  interpersonal connections, the chance for people to get to know each  other, to learn and recognize each other's culture and civilization, and  to embrace these, encouraging people to be open, curious, and objective  in such matters."

Guo  Jiaming, former deputy principal of the school, told Xinhua that the  school's development reflects the good momentum of strengthening  China-Hungary relations and growing exchanges between the two peoples.

Presently,  there are five Confucius Institutes in Hungary, and 12 universities in  China offer opportunities to learn the Hungarian language.

The  Chinese language has been incorporated into Hungary's national  education system and has become one of the subjects in the university  entrance examination. The cultural centers set up by both sides are also  an important platform for cultural exchanges.

"It  is important to the relations of the two countries to have people who  speak both languages well," said Zsuzsanna Erdelyi, principal of the  school, expressing her hope to see more intercultural exchanges to  promote understanding and friendship between the two peoples.