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Japan is my favorite country since I was young. The anime I watched, the manga I read and the Japanese songs I listened in my childhood taught me not to be afraid of dreaming. The things that made me more interested and want to visit Japan were the culture, language and discipline. Japanese are very polite, they follow discipline, and everything is designed and arranged. But as people always say not all things come easy and instant since my family has an average income. It was impossible for me to ask for allowance from my parents in order to visit the country. It is like Japan was a dream country for me.

My dream gave me an energy and hope. Although people around me pessimistic and laugh of my dream, I have to keep believing it likes Japanese do. Looking at the history, Japanese built the country begin from the spirit of the dream to be such a developed and respected country. Japan was once ruined by the atomic bombs dropped in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at 1945, Japan was destroyed by earthquake and tsunami, Japan also poor of natural resources. But nowadays, Japan turned into such a powerful country which is inspired many people. It became a technological and gadget innovation country. We can easily find any electronic devices, all types of the train; from electric train, monorail, until the super-express train called bullet train or Shinkansen which are manufactured by Japan. From there I am sure one day my dream will come true as long as I do not stop dreaming and of course I have to find a way to make it happen. I believe that life has special magic for those who dare to be dream.

My dream has turned into a reality when I was a master student in Indonesia’s university. At that time, I was sent to study in Japan for one and a half year as a double degree student. It was not easy to be selected. I made a lot of efforts, work hard, discipline, and commitment so they chose me. It was like a miracle that God sent for me. Moreover, since I loved Japan and got more interested in my study, my dream was not finished there. After completing my master degree, I am continuing the study to the doctoral degree in Kobe University for 3 years. I was very grateful since I can back to Japan both for study and enjoy the beauty once more time. This would not happen without the support of Senshu scholarship and I am very thankful to this scholarship.

September 17^th 2014, was became my first day in Japan. I was very excited and happy to be here, this country is more than what I ever imaged. It is so much more than anime or manga I have ever known. This is a place full of diversity and possibilities. Japan is for people who are not afraid to go all out, to center their whole lives in pursuit of what they love. It is for people who will happily spend hours adorning a single fingernail. For people who can spend the lifetime bejeweling a dresser. It is a country that celebrates changes and modern thinking, but at the same times a country that respected tradition and honors of values. The politeness, the friendliness, and the service from Japanese make me enjoy every single day here.

I would even say that having a dream and taking an interest of Japan has changed me to be a better person. It gave me a reason to always keep fighting and keep working hard. Japan has gave me perspective and made me realize what really interests me and what I want to do to live in a day. Moreover, it made me prove to the people that the impossible will be possible as long as we believe on it. It is important to keep dreaming and to never stop trying to fulfill this dream. Dream is what keeping us going, what keep pushing us forward. No dream is an impossible dream as long as you fight hard for it; nothing can stop you and take this dream away from you.

Porcupine is an ugly animal that has own uniqueness. This animal is moving. Porcupine can be found in holes, under trees, or even can be found among the piles of rocks. Porcupine eats ants, termites, and small insects on the ground. If porcupine is disturbed or threatened, this animal will dig the ground until the half of its body is buried. Porcupine is an easily adapted animal.

We need to learn a lot from the porcupine because this thorny animal never complains about its life. Porcupine was born in such a way, this animal’s body is surrounded by sharp thorns. Even though it is painful, but porcupine always takes them anywhere and keep moving without being disturbed by the thorns. In contrast to the most people in general who feel life is uncomfortable with the existence of thorns in life. Porcupine teaches us to receive the thorns.

Porcupine always carries thorns that can be used as a weapon. Porcupine can kill the predators just by enforcing the thorns. However, if there is a predator coming closer, the porcupine prefers another way. This animal prefers to give up and seek a shelter by burying itself in the ground. This animal has many ways out when faced with problems. The best defense is to roll itself like a ball so that many enemies are deceived. The thorns will only be raised when the porcupine is really pushed. This teaches us to always keep the spirit and always try to find the best way out when solving the problems.

There are two phrases that often become question within us, being the best or in what way we can be the best. Most people generally choose the first statement, to be the best. This statement is not wrong, but it is needed to be criticized. Analogously, the first statement refers to the figure of a fox, while the second is to a porcupine. Inspired by an ancient Greek poem: “The fox knows many things, but the porcupine knows one big thing” (Archilochus). A Fox is a predator of a porcupine. A fox knows a lot of little things in its life, it also has many ways to chase and attack the preys. A fox always roaming everywhere, sniffing right and left to find a porcupine. But in fact, it is difficult to eat the porcupine. This is because the porcupine understands the true advantage of itself, and the porcupine simply focuses on it. The porcupine knows only one thing in its life to defend itself, but it is very effective and at the same time often paralyze the opponents.

Porcupine teaches us a very important fundamental philosophy that we should not focus on being the best in many ways around us or in our environment where we work. More important thing is our awareness and understanding to know what is the best inside us. A fox wants to say that I am the best. While a porcupine silently lives with the best in me. Being the best in the world with in terms of whether we can be the best.

The concept of the porcupine is adapted in the following way: not trying to be the best in many ways, but finding the best in us or finding the opportunity to be the best. We need to stay focused, keep the spirit, and make the best in us something great. Do not waste the time by taking care of our rivals business. We have to start everything from the inside, not from the outside. We do not have to master the whole fields, the most important is able to give the best contribution even in one field.

Every human being, old or young have dreams and desires to be achieved, so did I who had a dream to finish my post graduate studies in Japan. It was not easy for me to turn my dream into a reality. A lot of efforts, hard work, discipline, and commitment were needed. And when it became real, I can never describe how happy and excited I was. It was like a miracle that God sent for me.

Before coming to Japan, I started preparing myself physically and mentally. Learn the university’s life and the things I have to do as a student in a Japanese university through the internet and from Indonesian students who experienced studying in Japan. As it happened I realized that there are plenty of differences between the two countries such as research in Japan is more autonomous compare to Indonesia. Another thing is laboratory working hours in Japan are far superior than Indonesia. I can hardly remember a student leaving an Indonesian university after 5pm, while in Japan some students even spend the night there. Moreover, teacher student relationship is more informal in Japan as teachers can invite students for dinner or even go to karaoke together. Besides that, in order to overcome the cultural differences problem I had also learned about Japanese life and conditions, like the weather, food, tradition, manner, etc. Knowing about those things made me confident about coming to Japan.

However, after I came here the main challenge was something else that caught me totally off guard. It was the language, I still remember how stupid I looked when asked very simple questions or using facilities. Like when the cashier asks me if I needed a plastic bag, or even want to buy a train ticket. I felt horrible and very dependent on others, so I decided to do something about it. I took some Japanese classes to help me with daily life in Japan, even though it was not part of my academic requirement. And that is how I started learning Kanji.

I took Kanji class along with speaking and listening classes, but the learning atmosphere in Kanji class was so special. Our teacher was very fastidious about the writing order and style. Almost everyone in the class was frustrated, as we were not only required to memorize how to write but also how to read. Some of the students even gave up, but I was determined and honestly even loved how hard it was for me to master the writing, and enjoyed hearing about the background story of some of them. Sometime I even make up some funny ones, “this shape on the right is like my niece’s nose, this one looks like me with four legs”, the funnier the easier it gets to remember it.

After the completion of the class, I realized how unique this beautiful language is. The effort it took Japanese kids at school to master it. It must have influenced to their behaviour, making them more patient, dedicated and skilful with their hands, it has even probably contributed to the brilliant and skill of manga drawers.

Sadly, it’s hard for me to keep taking the class. I am dedicating more time to my research now. However, I am planning to continue learning kanji once I graduate. I sometimes reminisce every time I meet some of my kanji classmates. It was a wonderful experience that will always push me to learn more.

Japan is one of the safest countries for the tourist destinations due to its low crime rate and peaceful population. Japanese people are taught manners, respect, and responsibility from a young age. This includes respect for others property; small children will know what to do if they find property that doesn’t belong to them. So do not be surprised if people can sleep in the trains with their bags open or even leave their belongings in the public area.

However, Japan is also famous as a country most affected by natural disaster. Because of its geography, nature is known to be unforgiving problem in the land of the rising sun. Some of the most expensive natural disasters have occurred in Japan, costing more than hundreds billion dollars for reforms and rebuilding, in the year 1995 and 2011. Japan has also been the site of ten of the worst natural disasters that have occurred during our own time in the 21^th century. The country has suffered through many years of natural anger upon them which has significantly affected the country’s growth, economy, development and also the social life of its citizens. So far, during my stay in Japan I have lived through some of these natural disasters; earthquakes, typhoon and even floods.

It is worth mentioning that the alert system and evacuation announcements are very effective and always keep you updated on the gravity of the situation. Japan has the most advanced earthquake early-warning system in the world. A nationwide online system launched in 2007, it detects tremors, calculate an earthquake’s epicentre and sends out brief warnings from its 1.000-plus seismograph scattered throughout the country, one of the most earthquake-prone nations on the planet.

However, what was unique and unprecedented in this year (2018), was the number of typhoons and also the surprising floods. Scientists have been warning about the consequences of global warming, they already forecasted increasing natural disasters in number and intensity; it was clear that we are beginning to really assess the impact of global warming. Japan has experienced seven typhoons this season. The last time the country has had these many storms was in 2004, with a record of 10 typhoons during the peak season, it has also been hit by its strongest typhoon in 25 years, In Osaka Bay this typhoon swept a tanker into a bridge and in Kyoto parts of a railway station roof came down. Officials ordered more than a million people in affected areas to evacuate their homes amid warnings of high waves, flooding and mudslides.

These events have led to other phenomenon, NHK, Japan’s national public broadcasting organization has received 354 reports of blooming cherry blossom trees from western Japan to the northernmost part of the country as of Oct. 14. Tree specialists suggested that it's due to typhoons which causing Sakura trees to loose their leaves. Those leaves release a hormone that stops the buds from growing. It means that unfortunately, during the coming spring, some Sakura trees are not going to bloom.

Thinking about that phenomena made me sad, but then it made me more determined to do my best in my research, as my work involves finding a permanent solution to non-degradable plastic which is called biodegradable plastic. It is a kind of plastics that can be decomposed by the action of living organisms, usually bacteria so that it will not leave any residue in nature. Therefore, by knowing how important is my research I find it more urgent and of utmost importance to tackle any nature threatening product and intend to do part of the big work that has to be done, before we loose more than what we have already lost.

Without us denying, looking beautiful and attractive is a standard in the association. For a woman, beauty equals power. It has often been said that there is no more powerful creature on the planet than a beautiful woman, and this can be seen countless times in history. From Cleopatra to Joan of Arc, men have crossed the seas and fought many wars for a beautiful woman. Beauty will help needed to meet the demands of association, work, and demands from the couple. But, to look beautiful as expected is not easy. The assumption of beauty is pain seems to describe that beauty comes at high cost and painful one. For decades, women have been conditioned to believe that we must suffer physically, mentally, or emotionally in order to be beautiful. They are often told that beauty is on the inside, but then society convinces them otherwise that it is a difficult process and something to be achieved. Women spend countless hours each week getting ready for their day. They take time to do their hair, makeup, and teeter around in high heels. The nature of beauty is one of the most contradicting, yet fascinating philosophies of all. Like fashion trends, the perception of beauty has consistently changed over the course off centuries sometimes for the better, and other times for the worst.

The desire for beauty in an instant way is often the choice of modern women. Therefore, not a few cosmetics industries are mixing various kinds of chemicals into their products to create such conditions. However, its use often causes dangerous side effects. So it is not surprising that now more often we find young women and even teenagers who have facial conditions damaged by cosmetic products, such as severe acne, severe skin flaking, and wide spots. Based on these reasons, in order to protect the body from damage, the use of natural materials as natural cosmetics began to be in demand again.

Consumption of fruits and vegetables makes the skin healthy and radiant. This ability is related to the content of carotenoids, namely pigments that make yellow, orange, and red as carrots and tomatoes. In plants, this pigment is responsible for helping chlorophyll capture sunlight and protect it from damage during photosynthesis. In the body, carotenoids function as antioxidants that can protect body cells from damage caused by free radicals that trigger cancer and skin aging.

As with animals, the human body stores carotenoids especially in the skin. Bright colour on the skin is caused by the process of absorption of carotenoids best in the outer layer of the skin. According to a study in 2005, this absorption process can be further enhanced by consuming avocado or avocado oil as a source of unsaturated fats. So, if you want to have a brighter skin colour, we should consume carotenoid vegetables together with avocados or other sources of unsaturated fats.

Besides being consumed directly, for reasons of practicality in use, comfort, and the provision of constant doses, carotenoids are packaged in several cosmetic products. The most widely applied carotenoid types as cosmetics are lycopene and β-carotene because these two types of carotenoids are more stable than other types of carotenoids. The presence of both is often found in cleaning products, moisturizers, lotions, bath products, make-up, hair care products, and facial skin care products. In hair care products, both are used to deal with brittle and branched hair. While in skin care products, both are used because of their antioxidant properties as a protective skin due to sunlight, and their ability to repair, and prevent premature aging of the skin.

Unconsciously, humans are dependent on the use of plastic. It is one of the most popular materials in manufacturing today, and even more widespread in everyday items like food wrappers, water bottles, cosmetic, and even chewing gum. It is especially attractive to industrial production because it can be molded into nearly any shape and dyed in any color. It is relatively lightweight, resistant to many chemicals, and it can be used as an insulator.

Throughout the year, the use of plastics tends to increase. The world now produces more than 380 million tonnes of plastic every year. This excessive consumption of plastic has not only diminishing fossil fuel stockpiles but also has resulted in a large amount of plastic waste because it is not derived from biological compounds. Most of the plastic is made from refining oil and natural gas that make this material difficult to degrade. Plastic is estimated to take 100-500 years to completely decompose. Therefore, plastic waste can lead to serious environmental problems. It can ultimately have negative impact by contaminating soil, water, sea, even air. Currently, lakes, rivers, and oceans are at the risk of being over contaminated. It is threatening the lives of millions of marine animals. Seals, whales, dolphins, seabirds, fish, crabs and many other sea animals are dying and becoming sick because of this deadly environmental concern. This problem becomes much more serious than expected since it also indirectly endangers human’s life and the conditions on the existing ecosystems of a whole planet.

The biggest problem of such pollution lies not in the drink bottles or plastic cups thrown away, but in microplastic. They are the tiny pieces hardly seen by the naked eye that are produced by degradation of the plastic over time. When getting to the global oceans, the plastic particles can be spread all over the globe with the currents of the wind. Sea animals often eat microplastic because of their small size. After consuming microplastic, seals and other animals may suffer for months of years before they die because of the toxic chemical from the microplastic which can increase the chance of disease and affect reproduction.

This is just one of many examples how plastic is causing tremendous damage in our environment. One plausible solution that accounts for the need of plastic use and eliminates its damage is the development of biodegradable plastic. It is a plastic material derived from natural sources that can degrade much more quickly and readily in the environment than the conventional plastic. Some of them have been derived entirely from raw biomass sources such as food waste, corn starch, and vegetable fats. The most common biodegradable plastic is polylactic acid (PLA) which is derived from fermented plant starch. A large number of retailers, especially within the food and drink industry, are now sourcing PLA products to replace traditional disposable plastics such as straws, coffee lids and cutlery.

On my part, I decided to join the fight against plastic pollution through my research which deals with developing food waste of various crustaceans mainly crabs and shrimps as a new biodegradable plastic for the need of medication. Coming here to Japan has been very helpful in achieving this mission. I appreciate everyone who helped me from Kobe University, namely my supervisors. I also dedicate special thanks and gratitude to the Senshu Scholarship Foundation that has been supporting me financially and trusting me with making the world a better place.