Oleksandr Serdyuk, a 30-year-old archer from Ukraine, held a calligraphy brush with the same concentration as he would hold a bow before shooting an arrow. He dipped it in ink and drew three characters on a piece of rice paper: wu, ke, lan, meaning Ukraine in Chinese.

"This is nice," Serdyuk said, smiling at the Chinese volunteer-teacher standing next to him.

Such scenes were not uncommon at the Chinese Language Learning Center in the Olympic Village yesterday.

Athletes and officials have been flocking to the 50-sq-m hall in the business street of the international zone since the Olympic Village opened on Sunday.

Their interests are varied. Some seem serious about learning Chinese and knowing about China's culture. Others appear happy getting the pronunciation and tone right for a couple of Chinese characters.

And then there are those who seem excited to just get a Chinese name.

"This is the first time an Olympic Village has had a language learning center," said its director Li Shufeng. "I hope our service will help athletes communicate in Chinese and understand more about the country and its people."

Chinese landscape paintings and embroidered pieces of the lucky knot hanging on the walls give the classroom a strong Chinese air.

The center has 30 top-level volunteer-teachers, who take turns to teach the language, especially the "30 Olympic-related sentences" to the athletes and officials.

Advanced teaching methods such as online courses and computer games are available to help the "students" reinforce their knowledge.

"It is a good idea to have a Chinese learning center," said Cristina Stahl, 30, a Romanian fencer, who checked into the Olympic Village on Monday.

The language center is just one of the special Chinese attractions in the otherwise cosmopolitan village. For instance on the business and culture street, athletes and officials can take part in a traditional Chinese tea ceremony, go in for acupuncture or manicure, enjoy a massage or watch how dough figurines or paper kites are made.

The village's architecture strikes a somewhat perfect balance between the modern and the traditional. At the center of modern apartment and office buildings is the operational zone, where the mayor's office stands out with its large-scale traditional Chinese courtyard surrounded by red walls.

In the residential zone, the athletes' rooms are equipped with modern furniture and electronic appliances, from refrigerators and TV sets to electric irons.

And the "dragon" on the doors provide the traditional touch.

Viktoria Dosa, an official of the Hungarian delegation, said: "Everywhere in the village you can see Chinese and international styles both. It is perfect."

(China Daily July 30, 2008)