But it's not just 26 letters, it's also the 26^n combinations of letters that one has to learn. You might argue that it's not really 26^n because there are rule

But it's not just 26 letters, it's also the 26^n combinations of letters that one has to learn. You might argue that it's not really 26^n because there are rules about vowels etc; but then there are also rules and patterns regarding how the strokes combine together to form Chinese characters, and if there's one thing the human brain is really good at it's recognizing patterns.