I am 42 years old and from Hamburg, Germany. I am a Chinese medicine enthusiast and practitioner. When I was 18 years old, I watched a wonderful kung fu performance in Germany, so I became interested in Chinese culture and began to learn Wing Chun with a martial arts teacher. He not only taught martial arts, but also some massage and meridian therapy, so I came into contact with Chinese medicine.

In 2005, in order to further study Chinese medicine, I went to China to study. Foreigners have to overcome many difficulties in learning Chinese medicine, such as language. In those years, I spent almost all my time studying except eating and sleeping, and finally successfully obtained the bachelor's and master's degrees from Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. In 2019, I became a foreign teacher in Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, teaching English of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture and Massage in English to undergraduate and graduate students of traditional Chinese medicine. I help Chinese students majoring in traditional Chinese medicine improve their English so that they can better serve overseas patients and better spread the culture of traditional Chinese medicine in the world.

During my study in China, in order to introduce Chinese medicine culture to more foreigners, I created the "Wushan TCM" international TCM website. On this platform, I have opened online courses such as TCM, acupuncture, Chinese medicine, and health preservation, and released my own TCM health preservation teaching videos. At present, more than 2800 foreign users have registered to learn. I hope that through my own efforts, more people can understand TCM and benefit from it.

As a foreigner who has paid close attention to and loved Chinese traditional culture for a long time, I am very happy to become a foreign teacher of traditional Chinese medicine. In the future, I will continue to work hard to make contributions to the wider spread of TCM culture worldwide.

(The author is a foreign teacher from Zhejiang University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, interviewed by our reporter Liu Junguo)

People's Daily (August 11, 2023, 17th edition)