Filip Filipovic speaks at a class meeting. [Photo provided to China Daily]

Filip Filipovic, 25, has lived in China for 18 years, receiving all his education from primary school to college level in Shanghai, where he is currently pursuing postgraduate studies in international politics at Fudan University.

When he arrived in China from Serbia with his parents at the age of 7, he spent some time at a Shaolin Temple in Henan province and practiced kung fu there.

"It was a very memorable experience to do kung fu with young people from China and overseas at a local martial arts school and learn about Chinese culture," he said.

Over the years, he has been amazed by how quickly the country has developed.

"The Ningbo, Zhejiang province, I visited two years ago was a completely different city to the one I saw for the first time 10 years ago," he said. "I have the same feeling toward Suzhou (in Jiangsu province). Each time I travel there, there is always a new subway line or a new skyscraper under construction."

Another take-away about modernization is that China is a country where the past, present and future coexist, he said.

As an example, just take Shanghai where he has lived for 18 years, he said. Every time friends visit, he takes them to the Chenghuang Temple, the Bund and the Lujiazui area.

The three places, which are less than a kilometer from each other, represent ancient, contemporary and modern China, he said, adding that China as a whole is a place where old meets modern, and one can see traditional culture in modern cities.

The same goes for Beijing. After a visit to the Forbidden City, one can travel to the Central Business District with its bustling commerce and trade just a few subway stops away, and the Sanlitun shopping center which has lots of young people and vitality, he said.

It can be said that China is a country with width and depth. It is three-dimensional, rich and comprehensive, Filipovic said.

"What I have experienced in the past 18 years in terms of the changes in Shanghai and China is amazing, and the speed of construction can certainly only be accomplished in China," he said.

From the founding of the Communist Party of China, more than a century ago, to the founding of New China to the present time, the aspiration to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and to make China independent, strong and wealthy remains unchanged, he said.

This unwavering aspiration, passed down through generations, can ensure that China achieves steady development in the future, he said.

Compared with some countries that have lost their way, China's direction is clearer and the goals have been fully identified, he added.