At age 14, Martina’s mother dragged her along to a Tai Chi class in a small German town. Decades later, Martina is sitting at the University of Sheffield Confucius Institute (SCI), decoding Chinese characters one by one.
From martial arts to mastering the xiao flute, scoring a perfect HSK2, and mapping out an upcoming 5,000-kilometre rail journey across China, this is an archaeologist's map of civilisation, drawn entirely through language.
The Long Road to the "Second Step"
Martina’s fascination with China started early. Her mother fell so in love with Tai Chi that she became an instructor, and today, in her 80s, she’s still teaching. But for Martina, actually learning the language was a winding road.
She tried at university, but her demanding archaeology major got in the way. She tried again later, but Covid lockdowns disrupted her classes.
Finally, last autumn, I decided to go back to the Confucius Institute and finish what had started decades ago," Martina says. "Laozi said, ‘A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.’ For me, it just took a very long time to firmly commit to the second step: fluency.
Martina
Seeing Characters Through an Archaeologist’s Lens
As a cultural heritage professional, Martina doesn't just see flashcards and grammar rules; she sees artifacts.
With 60 World Heritage Sites on her bucket list—from the Terracotta Army to the breath taking Karst landscapes of Guangxi, Martina views the Chinese language itself as an archaeological treasure.
- Living History: "The development from the first oracle bone script to modern written Chinese is fascinating," she explains. "There’s an inherent logic, hidden clues, and meanings in the words."
- The Ultimate Comparison: She constantly finds herself contrasting the historical development, land use, and ancient defensive structures of China with the Western world.
For Martina, learning characters isn't memorization. It’s reading history.