Russian Anatoly Livshits, 65, is the oldest student among teenage foreign students learning Chinese at Shenzhen University.

Wherever Livshits goes, he carries a school bag, in which there are several Chinese-Russian dictionaries and books of frequently used Chinese sentences.

He was a computer engineer in Germany, but the company he worked for went bankrupt about a year ago. He then came to China and began to learn Chinese while looking for another job.

“I wanted a job, but it was difficult to be employed in the computer industry at my age. Chinese is a tough course for me, but it helps me keep a good memory,” he said.

The old man lives alone and enjoys reading and visiting bookstores. He recently found a job in Germany and will leave in two months.
 
(Shenzhen Daily December 22, 2003)