Kyushu and my new hobby

Kyushu left a lasting impression on my mind. Nagasaki was a magnificent city with wonderful sights and a long, important history that is globally significant. I'd like to go back there sometime in the future.

I also developed a new hobby that pleases me a lot. I have been trying to find a hobby where I could express my artistic side. I have given up on physically straining and dangerous hobbies do I decided to stick up with photography. I hope that you find time to look at my amateur photos. Thanks.

Kyushu conference

Tomorrow is another travel experience for me. I was granted an all-expense paid trip to the Kyushu island in western Japan to attend the Japanese Society for Periodontology's annual convention. The first stop is Fukuoka International Airport and from there, I am taking the train to Nagasaki where the conference will be held for two days.

Since I learned about world history, I have hoped to one day visit the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. These cities have carved their bitter past on the walls of history to forever echo the horrors of war and to never again let the two cities and the rest of the world suffer the same fate. I have been to Hiroshima more than two years ago, so I was pleased to learn that I'd be going to Nagasaki this time.

I love Hiroshima. It was replanned after WW II so the city has transformed into a modern, romantic and spacious metropolis with the remains of the old days carefully preserved. I heard that Nagazaki could rival any other cities in Japan. It was there that some parts of the film "The Last Samurai" were shot. The city has a considerable Christian population and is famous for mimicking European buildings especially the gothic architecture of Amsterdam. I was also advised to have a taste of their local delicacy called "Champon".

After the conference, I'll stay in Fukuoka for one day to have a look around. I like to visit Hakata port, the gateway of Japan to the Korean peninsula. I can't wait to be there!

Spring picnic

hanami pics and others

Spring in Japan will never be complete without having a picnic under the blossoming cherry trees. The Japanese call this practice hanami which literally means "see the flowers". Of course, I was again carrying my camera around and taking pictures of beautiful things and people. I included some previous pics that I took this week. I hope that you'd like them.

Spring is here

my little photo exhibit

Yesterday was such a fine day and the flowers were inspiring. With my new digital camera, I took some snaps of the lovely flowers that the bible described as "more beautiful that the most expensive robes of King Solomon". I uploaded some of my debut shots here or you can click the image above.

Diploma from the Philippines.

The speech delivered by DepEd secretary E. de Jesus to the graduating students of the Ateneo should be enough to awaken the aestivating senses of our government officials and to stretch their indolent muscles to do some action to alleviate the current state of education in the Philippines. It is alarming that every year, the number of unemployed fresh graduates is increasing and Filipinos shamefully eat the dust of their asian counterparts that have zoomed thousands of miles ahead, leaving the Philippine educational system wretched and bleeding to death. This is not an exaggeration.

Having lived abroad for quite some time now, I have realized how poor and obsolete our educational system is. While other countries increase or modify the academic requirements for their students every year to cope with the challenges and to deal with the changes brought by modernization and globalization, the Philippines seems to do exactly the opposite. Everytime I go back for vacation, I notice that there are fewer facilities, more dilapidated classrooms, and less teachers around. This must have an impact on the quality of graduates that our schools produce.

As Sec. de Jesus has said, a diploma from the Ateneo will not ensure a place for graduate education abroad. I also know that a graduate from a regular university is not guaranteed of a minimum wage job in the Philippines. What about those from small colleges in remote provinces? Philosophers have lectured time and again that education is the ultimate weapon against poverty. But if you are already educated and still cannot escape from the clutches of poverty, what else could you do?

The government always boasts of our high literacy rate. But in these times of stiff competition, knowing how to read and write only is not enough to keep our head above the water. Before it's too late, our government has to do something or we could be content seeing our smart young graduates settle for a call center job or our professionals leaving the country to work as unskilled workers abroad.

My favorite japanese song

"Uji no mori de Chiyo ni sayoonara"

My favorite Japanese singers are from Okinawa - Rimi Natsukawa, Kiroro and The Boom to name a few. All of them have wonderful singing voices and great hits that have springboarded them to stardom. They have also brought Okinawan folk music to foreign shores like China, Korea and Russia.

I love to listen to Japanese traditional music, especially the genre that the Okinawans are famous for. They combine the soothing sound of the shamisen with contemporary music. Their songs though are mostly about heartaches and goodbyes and the lyrics are just bluer than midnight blue. But nevertheless, the songs have helped me understand and embrace the Japanese culture.

The song that will definitely ring in my ears forever and bring so many happy memories of my stay here is Shima Uta or "Song of the Islands" by the hitmaker duo The Boom. It tells of a pure and enduring friendship between two people who were separated from each other. But even if the rugged seas physically separate them, their songs are carried by the wind and by the fallen petals travelling across the ocean waves to touch each other's heart. This song is usually the last song that we play everytime there is a farewell party for a friend who is leaving Japan for good.

You can hear the song by choosing it from the "What's Playing" list at the right sidebar of this blog. The lyrics are here.I hope you would love the song too. Enjoy!

Genes reveal secrets

Anna Anderson insisted that she was Princess Anastasia Romanov until her own DNA told the truth.

A struggling geneticist - that's me and I am happy about it. I may not have a diploma in genetics but I have proven to the scientific community that I could contribute something to the continuously advancing and competitive world of genetics research. To my friends, I might sound like I have turned into a creepy scientist in a smoky lab but I really do love to discover things and to understand the intricacies of the human body.

I was so tired today trying to do a new research. It is still about genetics, but a single step further from what I was doing before. With the help of my colleagues, I was able to operate some new machines and to broaden my lab skills a little more. Of course, I know that I have a lot of catching-up to do on the theoretical aspect, but I am doing my best to sharpen my knowledge on molecular biology. Thanks to the unlimited books, journals and materials here in Japan, I could do self-studies anytime I want to.

Genetics became my passion since I learned how complex yet marvelous the workings of the genes are. These tiny molecules control and manage everything that functions inside our body. From the color of our eyes to how we manage stress, genes play indispensable, repetitive and precise roles. They have been very useful in a myriad of things like proving innocence in a crime, establishing paternity and even managing a disease before it even occurs. These things have sparked my interest and I intend to remain in the field until God knows when.