Flight 1 of 3

I am finally sitting here in Logan Airport and it feels like I am headed off to my first semester of college (that said, I started by doing NUin Australia). But there is the feeling of being alone, suddenly torn from the comforts I have built around myself here in Boston. The past few days have been full of laundry and packing after returning from canoeing in Canada with just enough time to turn things around and head back out. I am incredibly excited to be finally on my way!! Five months after accepting the co-op I just have 24 hours of flying;) I’ll check in next from Okinawa.

Procrastination

Checking in from Canada! I am heading to Japan in under 2 weeks but in the mean time I will be spending the next 10 days canoeing in Ontario. I will be without phone and Internet until later next week, but I fortunately managed to square away my visa, flights, and living arrangements for co-op. All that is left is pack-up and head back to Logan.

Happy paddling ;)

An Introduction

Konnichiwa! In three weeks I will be flying to Okinawa, Japan, and I have already forgotten most of my (very limited, JPNS 1101 level) Japanese. “It will come back to you,” people say, “when you are forced to use it”. Yes, I agree, I think it will. But that is what is both difficult and incredibly rewarding about traveling abroad. You are always being pushed a little bit outside of your comfort zone. You are relearning life’s basics under a new set of rules. Ordering food, buying a bus ticket, and using a bathroom are all activities that can end up being far more adventurous than initially anticipated.

This will be my third co-op at Northeastern and I will be living and working in Onna Village, Okinawa, Japan from September to December at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST). Closer to Taiwan than Japan’s main Islands, Okinawa has been described to me as having a culture that is distinct from the busy cities of Tokyo and Osaka. Instead of hustle and bustle of city life, things run on “island time”. The islands of Okinawa are a popular vacation destination for “mainland” tourists, and offer a more tropical climate.

At OIST I will be working in the Economo Biodiversity and Biocomplexity research unit. I am currently in my senior year at Northeastern, studying environmental science and biology, and am very interested in studying how human development impacts surrounding ecosystems. I hope to explore this interest in a new context in the Economo lab, where a major research focus is on ants! Side note-- when I accepted this co-op I knew the lab was nicknamed the “Ari-lab” but it wasn’t until I was learning the equivalent of my Japanese ABCs that I discovered Ari (蟻) means Ant….A-for-Ant…okay I got it, probably something I should know.

More updates to come!!

Hajimemashite--nice to meet you.

Tori