Category Archives: Culture

Learning on Diversity from Rainbow Country Mauritius

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Oh, you lived in a resort country!

That was the typical misunderstanding I kept hearing when I said I lived in Mauritania since 2018, as many people thought it was MAURItius, a country also known as “rainbow country” for its diversity.

And after years of this MAURI*** dichotomy in mind, I finally visited Mauritius, which was truly amazing. “God created Mauritius first, and then created heaven in imitation of Mauritius” as Mark Twain, author of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, put it, Mauritius is full of charm. It was not only nice resort, but it also lived with diversity which I believe is a key to the better world to embrace the difference (without that, we might keep having wars and conflicts).

In this post, I would like to share some of the tastes of Mauritius through online info and what I experienced (not available online and several highlight collage photos!), hoping this can contribute to promoting Mauritius and diversity.

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Learning by Teaching an Intensive Graduate School Course on SDGs

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Thank you Professor, I learned a lot!

This was the rewarding comment from my students of the SDGs course I teach at Tsukuba University Graduate school as a visiting lecturer.

SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) include so many things that it is quite easy to get lost on what to do, and there are so many ways to contribute. In this post, I will briefly share why I teach unconventional course content for SDGs, course description and some learning out of it. Since SDGs is everyone’s business (in theory but not in practice) but still complex for many, I hope this might serve to unpack these global goals.

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Learning from Cashew Nut in Mozambique

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How much do you know about cashew nuts?

You might be shrugging your shoulder or tilting head, thinking why I am asking this.

To me, it was nothing but a part of nuts family (almond, walnut, peanut, etc.), and just learning a bit of this nut was quite interesting (at least to me). In this post, I will share some facts about cashew, which expanded my world. Probably there are not many people passionate about cashew nuts, but it can be a good example to show that any trivial thing can become a part of learning, which lets you see things differently.

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Story and tips for passing Portuguese Exam CAPLE C1 level

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Each learning has its own story.

Although people find it hard to understand why I learned Spanish in USA and started French in Chile, each language story makes sense to me. Here is my story on learning Portuguese, as well as some learning from the process of passing Portuguese Exam CAPLE C1 level.

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3 examples of making the impossible possible in Mozambique

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This would be maybe impossible…

Judging from my previous experiences and my personality, I think there are quite a few things that I unconsciously think are impossible. Three months have already passed since I came to Mozambique in Southern Africa, and I have learned a lot. In this entry, I will share 3 examples of making the impossible possible in Mozambique.

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Achieving a Ten-Year-long Dream and Language Learning at Lençóis in Brazil

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-One day, I will definitely go to this place-

More than 10 years ago, I saw a picture of Lençóis in Brazil, and I promised myself to see it in my eyes one day. It has been “one day” for long time as it was not easy to make it happen due to its limited season (June-Aug) and access (far from all the places I was based in).

This year, I had a chance to visit Chile in June, and despite remaining COVID-19 restriction, I decided to travel there. It was also for brushing up my language skill before landing at a new duty station (Mozambique, Portuguese speaking country just like Brazil). In this post, I would like to share my experience from traveler and language learner’s point of view.

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Highlights and Learnings after Living in Denmark for 6+ Months

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What we can learn from Denmarkー one of the happiest countries in the world

This was the title of an online webinar I joined 6 months before moving there. Had I known that I will actually live in that country, I would have listened more seriously.

In this entry, I will share some of my thoughts of living for more than 6 months in Denmark ー one of the happiest countries ー with specific interests in food, culture, education and things to see. I hope this will serve a guide and learning for anyone interested to visit and know more about Denmark.

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