the exams – over; the summer break – ahead

In my last post, I was writing about being terrified and feeling hopeless because exams were coming. Luckily, it's all over now. It was eight exhausting days full mental breakdowns over the possibility of failing or getting bad results sandwiched between speed-revising for the next exam. I wish you could feel the atmosphere during an exam – several hundreds of students cramped into an exhibition hall turned into an examination centre; grumpy invigilators with radios on a hunt for cheaters; airplanes flying over our heads, landing at the nearby London City Airport every ~20 minutes - ideal place for concentrating and squeezing all the information out of your head down on the paper in front of you. Lovely experience - not mentioning that you had to wait two months for the results. Fortunately, even this period of uncertainty is over now, the results are out, and I can focus on more enjoyable activities than not remembering genetics. The summer break is here! Although I hate summer (more the temperatures than summer itself), I must say I am enjoying the five-month break so far. Who wouldn't...?

For a few years now, I try to spend my summers in a meaningful way and not just hang out or play PC games the whole summer. Until now, I was always at the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry working on a research of the carbonic anhydrase Nce103p from Candida parapsilosis. Over the years I spent there, I've learned a lot and gained some precious lab skills. I wanted this summer to be no exception, so I tried to find myself an internship in London, where I could learn something new and exciting. In the end, I've applied for a summer internship position in the Lab for Vascular Morphogenesis at RIKEN Research Institute in Kobe, Japan, which I saw at the webpage of the career centre UCL has. I was thinking - wow, that's such a great opportunity, why not try it and apply? Saying that I am writing this post in Kobe will explain enough. I know that Kobe is not London, but hey - it's three months in Japan. Don't put all of your eggs into one basket, they say - how can I know that London is so good, if I haven't tried anything else.

I am working on a project studying cellular signaling pathways that govern the development of vasculature in Zebrafish embryos. At first, I wasn't really into it - vascular development - phew, but now when I had the opportunity to really understand what it's about, it's a genuinely exciting topic and I am more than happy to be a part of the research group here.

And Japan? Quite a strange world, I must say. It's very different from what I know. People are quieter here; they seem to be obsessed with paperwork, love cash, and use fish for everything. Being a vegetarian is definitely not an easy option here. More or less, the only possibility is to cook for yourself. Luckily, I love to cook, so I hope that, in the end, it will not be as hard as it seems now, after only one week here.

I hope it will all go fine; I will gather some interesting data and enjoy it here. Well, only time will tell.