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I visited the boiling valley (Owakudani) near Hakone yesterday and had a great time hiking around the volcanoes. I have been slowly adding some photos of the trip to my photo site. At the Owakudani I ate two black eggs (Kuro-tamago). These are chicken eggs that turn black when being boiled in the sulfurous hot springs. Eating one of them will add 7 years to your life. I ate two and will therefore be hanging around for 14 more years. This is great news considering how much I have been indulging on alcohol, Malboro's and unhealthy food lately.
A kiss to 7 more years of living large! Getting rid of the sulfur taste on my lips kept me busy for hours after. The 'smoke' behind me is very smelly gas coming out of the ground.
Luckily the eggs are not black on the inside.
3.3 Magnitude Earthquake on Sunday. My Response:
(standing in the middle of the room in his underwear)- Woah. What's going on. The building is moving!
- This must be an earthquake!(moves to the window to see if he can see the trees shaking)- Cool!- Should I hide under my desk or go outside?(Stands by the window for additional minute contemplating what to do)- It's over. That was a strange experience.
- I'll go outside to get some beer, maybe I can see some action. (gets dressed and leaves)Proper Action in the Case of an Earthquake:Stay inside DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Move only a few steps to a nearby safe place. Take cover under and hold onto a piece of heavy furniture or stand against an inside wall. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you're sure it's safe to exit. Stay away from windows and doors. DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Move only a few steps to a nearby safe place. Take cover under and hold onto a piece of heavy furniture or stand against an inside wall. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you're sure it's safe to exit. Stay away from windows and doors.Stay inside DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Move only a few steps to a nearby safe place. Take cover under and hold onto a piece of heavy furniture or stand against an inside wall. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you're sure it's safe to exit. Stay away from windows and doors.
ANALYSIS of Oliver's Response:A complete failure.
I didn't do better during the 6.1 tremor last night. I was laying in bed and contemplated getting up. In the end I decided that it wasn't worth the effort. I was, however, terrified that the curtain rod over my head would come crashing down and knock me out.
Proper Action: When in bed, cover your head with a pillow!
Don't just lie there and imagine what happens when the curtain rod hits you.....
We had one on Sunday, but none of my Japanese colleagues even noticed it. But I was very freaked out!
Last night we had another very strong quake - check it out.
Wonder if someone else felt it too.
Earthquakes are very scary and I just don't see myself ever getting used to them.
Yesterday, I (along with some other Gaijin's) ventured to the Golden Gai. This is a small shanty neighbourhood with very narrow alleys, stray cats and countless tiny little pubs. The pubs are not much bigger than a closet, sometimes you have to climb up some very steep stairs (going back down in a haze is much harder) and for someone as tall as me, the low ceilings really do pose a problem (which becomes exaggerated with each drink). All in all it's a very cool place to visit (Alex , you will love this place).By chance we ended up in a bar that hosted a photography exhibit by Motohiro Negishi. I made friends with him (with my 3 Japanese words) over some Edamame and beer. Check out some of his photos...
Negishi-san showing me his new Holga Lomomat. I want one too.
It's been a fair bit since I have updated this blog. Work, work, work is all I have been doing in the meantime. My project is coming along, albeit slowly. Science is always slower and harder in practice than in theory.
It's been a fair bit since I have updated this blog. Work, work, work is all I have been doing in the meantime. My project is coming along, albeit slowly. Science is always slower and harder in practice than in theory.This summarizes my last few weeks. I have been imaging (with a confocal microscope) the developing olfactory system of zebrafish larvae. It's quite remarkable how sturdy these fish are - I have imaged the same fish 16 times already (imaging them involves taking them out of water, placing them in gel and keeping them immobilized under a microscope for ~ 40 minutes) and they are still alive! The image of the top shows the olfactory bulbs of 3 different fish (left to right) imaged repeatedly for a couple of days (top to bottom). The fish that you see above was developed by Sato et al., 2005. J. Neuroscience (25): 4889ff. What else?
I have not gotten out much until this weekend (updates to follow) and when I get home (always late) I watch old cheesy movies on YouTube that don't require much thinking. The latest very enjoyable choice was Top Gun (embarrassing?). My favourite part of the movie is (and has always been) the 'high fives' that Maverick and Goose give each other while playing volleyball. I have always tried to be that cool when I played sports but somehow always missed the other person's hand on the backstroke. Maybe I should practice this in the lab with my fish......
A kiss to 7 more years of living large! Getting rid of the sulfur taste on my lips kept me busy for hours after. The 'smoke' behind me is very smelly gas coming out of the ground.
Luckily the eggs are not black on the inside. 
