Quo vadis Japan?

2010-04-20T20:59:00.004+09:00

It has been a long while (over a year) since my last post, so a lot of things have happened...

Internship at NII
This was last year from March till the end of August, and I consider it a great success. Not only did I manage to properly write my master thesis, I also found a research area in Service Oriented Computing, and came to the conclusion that doing a PhD would be an interesting experience, even if I plan to join a company afterwards. More over, as I liked working my professor and participating in my lab very much, I decided to apply for the PhD there.

Back in Germany
With finishing to write up my thesis, preparing everything for going back to Japan again, filling out applications, and preparing for the entrance exam this four month went by quite fast. I don't know when I will enjoy such a Christmas in Germany again - beautiful snow scenery everywhere you look, and the best (Christmas) cookies you can ever find :)

Back in Japan
I came back to Japan in January to adjust myself to the climate before the entrance exam and to finish my exam preparations. Quite fun reviewing your last 5 years of university and seeing how much you already have forgotten... While the exam was in early February, the result did not arrive till the end of said month. So while waiting for the result was a little bit unnerving, there was not much to do... which suddenly changed after actually getting it - filling out forms after forms (all in Japanese of course) I was quite happy to rely on the wonderful secretary at our lab ^^

PhD
Fast forward to today: My Phd started officially in April, and just recently I moved to the student dorm in which I can stay for 1 year and which, while quite small, is fairly OK, especially regarding the price. I'm still waiting for my student visa though, but I guess this time of year is just the most busy one in Japan, as many things start in April (school, university, even new company workers). On the research side I am back in the matter, and for now I am focusing on one particular idea for a while, and it will be interesting to see where it will take me over the course of the PhD. Regarding my lab, I am taking care of this term's English Workshop, and I hope I can continue to contribute something ;-)

Japanese
Being again quite busy I decided against joining a particular language course. Instead I will be learning and reviewing Japanese by myself - words and kanjis mainly. The next goal would be to take part in the 2nd level of the Japanese language exam, for which I still have a long way to go though, especially regarding my writing and reading skills...

So?
Summarizing, a lot has happened, and as of now I will be in Japan at least for the next 3 years doing my PhD. After that I wouldn't mind finding a job here, but who knows what the future will bring. So I don't know how often I will be back in Germany, thus, if any of you come to Japan, please say hi to me in Tokyo :)

How come Japan?

2009-02-21T12:35:00.002+09:00

As I often get asked about it, I decided to reflect a little about how my fascination for Japan did come along - now that I had a little time to actually do so. Maybe some things will become clearer that way...

Anime

Anno 2002 (at high school): Vision of Escaflowne (shown on german TV) becomes my first anime, that I become a fan of. Some fansites later I actually realize what an anime is and that Escaflowne is one. I also stumble across some simple Japanese "language courses" by some enthusiastic fans trough those sites.

Now aware of anime, I start to watch more anime on TV. And because of the general lack of anime in Germany I begin to watch online streams as well. Last Exile becomes the first anime, that I watch in Japanese with English subtitles online. Inspired from my friends I also start to read manga at that time.

Japanese

Fast forward to 2004: Having graduated from high school, completed my civilian service and being accepted for studies of Computer Science at the LMU university in Munich, I have to decide my minor subject. On the one hand I am surprised how many different choices there are, but on the other hand a lot of subjects seem so closely related to computer science, that they almost look a little too boring. So I decide to settle for the subject, which seems most interesting to me: Japanese Studies!

Two semesters later in winter 2005: As expected Japanese Studies take up a lot of my time, but for the first time, I am feeling like I can actually understand significant parts of at least some anime. Through the gained language proficiency I am also becoming able to start watching Japanese dramas.

Some semesters later in 2007: Through my courses of Japanese Studies (and also due to watching Japanese dramas, I guess), I develop a growing interest for Japanese Culture and Japan in general. In parallel I have become interested in the Software Engineering master program, which specializes in certain engineering aspects of Computer Science, that particularly interest me. The possibility for an semester abroad comes in as a plus, so I decide to apply for the program, and later I get accepted for the winter semester.

Japan

Welcome in the current day in 2009: I have completed all courses and exams for my master program except for my master thesis. While I have been extremely busy the first two semesters (2007-2008), this semester I had some more leisure, which enabled me focus once again a little more on my Japanese. Reviewing what I had learned and finally getting serious with learning the kanji via Heisig's method, I feel at least back on track regarding my Japanese.

Furthermore I have been accepted by the National Institute of Informatics in Tokyo for writing my master thesis there. This will be my first stay in Japan, so I am already very much looking forward to it! I will go there in March and stay for approximately six months with two of my fellow students, who also applied for NII.

Of course I do not know for sure now, but it might also be possible, that this stay will influence my decision of what I will do after graduating in some ways ;-)

Adrian's Thoughts

Quo vadis Japan?

How come Japan?