Journeys for Knowledge

As many of you may know, a massive typhoon just passed through Okinawa on its way to Japan. As such I was forced to spend the entire weekend locked in my apartment, listening to the powerful winds lash against the outer walls. Needless to say I remained unharmed through the ordeal, and even made some good progress on building yet another Gundam model. This model wasn’t just a simple way to pass the time, it was a reward for my successful Master’s defense for Cambridge, another sort of storm if you will. Unfortunately grad school does not leave much time for these hobbies, but even a little work here and there, or while a storm prevents you from working, goes a long way towards easing the mind.

It’s been a while since I updated about my life in Japan, so there will be a lot to cover today. To start with, research has become a lot more interesting. The simulations I was given to complete have given me a much better understanding of the electron microscope I’m working on, so I’ve been able to use real data collected last week to help characterize the focusing power of the system. Analog electronics class has been mostly review thus far, so I spend most of my time in that class helping other students and explaining how their circuits work.

Last weekend, a first years all got together to have a potluck. Naturally my first instinct was to make real curry to show my Japanese friends how different Japanese curry was, but while buying ingredients, I realized I could actually make muffins here, so I did that instead. As expected, they were a huge success. It was fun to see all the unique foods people would make, and reinforced the realization that it’s quite possible to make just about anything I would cook back home.

After dinner, a group of us went down to the beach to set off fireworks. I’ve set off sparklets before, but back home fireworks are mostly banned due to the risk they pose of starting wildfires in dry California. As such, it was really great so see so many types of fireworks, from sparklers to rockets to littles boxes that shot out mini rockets. The pictures below speak better than my own words, so I simply leave it at that. I will follow up with another post soon about my Master’s defense with Cambridge.

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I apologize for the delay in this blog post, a lot has happened in the last few weeks since moving to Japan, but I did not have internet access at home until recently. In short, my adjustment to life in Japan has not been as easy as I expected, but certainly not difficult. The first week was dedicated to settling in and preparing for the beginning of graduate life. Since most of the students in my cohort were from outside of Japan, much of this time was spent getting acquiring internet access, cellphones, groceries, and healthcare. I was given one of the new 1 bedroom apartments as my residence, which is so new in fact that the landscaping is still on going. Today they just put in trees, so it’ll be interesting to see how my home eventually looks. Even if I’m very well versed in the culture here, some things are still taking some getting used to. Food is a good example of this, not just in terms of watching out for allergies, but also realizing many foods we take for granted back home are very expensive here, particularly dairy products other than milk, and certain produce. However, the food I have been eating is really good, especially the bento boxes I eat at lunch time.

In terms of people, I met most of the people in my cohort within the first few days, including a few Americans and many Japanese. There were a few people from India as well, though no Asian American like myself. Still I get along quite well everyone, and the Japanese people in my class enjoy discussing anime with me. I also run into professors I met during the interview session, and they are very chill people. Of course I also run into Dave, my old teacher from COSMOS, and he’s quite happy that I’m here. It’s just a little odd to see him repeat some of the same stories 3 or 4 times to me, but he’s still as clever as ever and is always willing to stand up for me against academic issues.

Finally with regards to work, I’ve started my research rotations, which involve three terms of working in different labs, with one being outside my field. So I’m starting in a Physics instrumentation lab (which I want to do my thesis in), a genetics lab that works with rice, and a organic solar cell lab. While the current supervisor expects a lot of me, I think it is the kind of rigorous environment I need to really focus again, and there’s a lot I can learn from his inventiveness.

All in all, I’m getting by here in Okinawa. The humidity sucks but the sunsets are nice, and I always have an ocean view. The sight of the ocean really helps, and it’s something I didn’t have so much in Cambridge, so I do appreciate it.

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For the past 15 years my family along with our close family friends would retreat into the mountain of California for a weekend of camping. The goal initially was to rekindle in my parent’s generation the lost memories and feelings from their time in Kashmir, before they had to leave. Eventually it grew to have its own significance, becoming a place for us to detach from our busy lives and enjoy each other’s company, along with copious amounts of Kashmiri food.

This year we decided to do things a little differently, opting for a chalet in the woods just outside Mount Shasta instead of tents. Together in one giant house, we were able to focus more on the company and less of simply getting comfortable in the outdoors. What remained unchanged however were the outings, with the first day involving a short hike around McArthur-Burney Falls. The falls provided an excellent spot to sit and relax, with the crashing mists protecting us from the burning heat. After enjoying the falls, we ate a very late lunch at another smaller falls which was more swimming friendly, before heading home to prepare dinner and relax.

The next day started earlier, as we embarked on an 8 mile hike around Lake Siskiyou, at the base of Mount Shasta. It was immediately apparent how dry California has become, with whole river beds run dry, and trails opening up on the lake bed that would be flooded in April. A small trickle of a stream proved to be the perfect place to stop for lunch, and even observe some interesting fauna. Like previous camps, this weekend in Shasta was a good balance between comfort and challenge.

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Today Philip and I started a bit earlier, and while the girls slept we slipped out to pick up some bread for breakfast. Little did we realize the festival from last night had a second full day’s worth of events, starting with the arrival of the local brass bands. Each town in the valley had a brass band, and one by one they marched into the town square to form a giant brass band formation. Needless to say all this tooting woke up the girls, and soon we were on our way for another outing.

Today we decided to visit another glacial lake, which was more deeply tucked in the mountains. This time I decided not to go into the water, though that did not stop my friends from jumping into the ice cold water. Instead I simply took in the surroundings, including the local llamas. We had a quiet night that evening, just relaxing and talking. The next morning we had to drive early to Innsbruck, so I could catch my flight back to London. It was a very short trip, and it was tough to say goodbye to my friends, but it was well worth it. Mountains are in my blood, so even if my travels take away from them, I’ll always find my way back.

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After a good night’s sleep, we got to a slow start with some lazy but filling breakfast. Since it was poor weather for hiking, we decided to instead visit some local towns, including one of the many castles in the region. While these castles are not the behemoths you might expect, they were still functional fortresses for minor nobility.

As the skies cleared we continued onward to a glacial lake in the valley, which was truly breathing taking. The water is so clean and pure it is an entirely different color compared to normal waters, let alone the dark dirty water of the river Cam. It was so clean I even decided to take a dip, albeit a very shallow one. This lake had a rather interesting feature, a lone church tower rising out of the water, the only remnant of the village that was relocated to higher ground when the lake was flooded for a dam. Heritage and tradition are important in Europe, no matter how far back it stretches.

To hammer this point home, after our day out, and some home cooked pasta alla funghi, we walked over to the local festival to see how things were. One thing I learned is that non-alcoholic beer is nowhere near as enjoyable as root beer, for a teetotaller like me. It was an interesting mix of old and new, with many people in traditional alpine clothing, but cover bands playing modern music. I cannot think of a finer moment to symbolize this than the time a man played Tequila on an alpine horn. It was a wonderful festival and a very long day, but we still sat around admiring the stars and the faint street lights before going to bed.

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Having completed my thesis at the end of July, I was left with a week with which to relax and pack for my return home. I chose to spend four of those days visiting my friend Philip at his home in the Italian Alps. Though technically I was in Italy, the region is primarily German speaking, and to get there I had to fly to Austria and take the train further into the valley. The train ride gave me time to rest and enjoy the mountain scenery, a stark contrast from the rolling hills of England. I arrived in Meran and met up with Philip along with my other friends Ali and Isabelle, as we explored the town. It was a quiet town with an amazing landscape, and it wasn’t until the sun finally went down that we realized how late it was getting. A peaceful start to a well earned vacation.

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For those of you who do not understand Japanese, the title simply means, “I am Gundam”, a common phrase from the main character of Gundam OO. This thought spawned what will be my final creation in England, a helmet modeled after the eponymous Gundam robotic suits. The helmet consist of an incomplete inner shell to rest on my head and glasses, much like the Witchking crown from before, along with an outer shell to form the shape of the Gundam helmet and hold the V fin. Once the shape was finalized, I went back and tried to make the helmet look as solid as possible. People has suggested I cover the helmet with cloth or foil, but my goal isn’t realism. I simply want to build things that are fun, and the fact that K’nex is my medium simply makes it all the more challenging and ridiculous.

On a side note, I have finally begun taking experimental data for my thesis, so I have been working hard to collect and analyze as much as possible in my last month here. Being able to work on this helmet in between has definitely helped deal with the sheer amount of work that lies before me.

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Today was a rather odd day. Not only did I not have to go into lab, but there were an unusually large amount of people swarming Cambridge. Swarming is definitely correct word, for even a simply walk to the park took an hour because of the barricades and crowds of people awaiting the beginning of the Tour de France stage. The riders were starting in Cambridge and making their way to London, something that is unlikely to happen again for quite some time. Unfortunately this unique experience was marred by the sheer commercialism permeating every little aspect of the race. Still, I found a simple joy in being able to eat a true French baguette with lunch, and appreciate just how quiet of a town Cambridge really is, even on a busy day.

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Despite all the time I have spent in Cambridge, I have failed to make the time to go over the visit our archrival Oxford, until now. Luckily I was not alone, for the rainy 3-4 hour bus ride there and back can get quite boring by myself. Upon arrival in Oxford my friend Suzan and I proceeded to get some quick Thai food for lunch, not unlike the cheap Thai food I would frequently eat in Berkeley. Fueled for the day, we set out into town to find the rains had parted and the sun had broke through.

Walking through downtown Oxford was a bit surreal, not because it was Oxford, but because it resembled the King’s Parade in Cambridge so well. There was even the same fudge shop at the center! At the end of this road was the Bodleian Library, an unassuming building from the outside, but with a beautiful courtyard inside. Each of the doors leading from the courtyard into the library list a classical subject in Latin, such as Geometry, Astronomy, Medicine, and Moral Philosophy.

Oxford is overall more urban than Cambridge, and many of its old buildings have featured in the Harry Potter films. Chief among these was Christchurch College, whose dining hall featured Hogwarts’ Grand Hall. The courtyard in the center was not in any film, but it was inspiration for the Quidditch pitch. In that same vein, the novel Alice in Wonderland was composed within these walls, as Lewis Caroll was a fellow at Christchurch, and based his characters after people around him, including the college master’s daughter Alice.

Moving west, the next stop was the Oxford Botanical Gardens. Although the garden was laid out nicely alone the river, it paled in comparison to Cambridge’s in terms of size and variety of plants. Walking around the gardens used up the last bits of sunlight before the rains came back, forcing us to seek shelter inside. Since the museums were all closed by that point, it seemed prudent to have an early dinner so as not to miss the last bus home. To this end we ate the Opium Den, enjoying some classic chinese green beans and an interesting dish known as Eight Treasures Bird’s Nest. Having satiated both hunger and curiosity in Oxford, it was time to return home to the familiar open space of Churchill College.

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