My awesome new tattoo machines. :)

MEXT MONBUKAGAKUSHO Part II: The Interview

MONBUKAGAKUSHO: MEXT a research scholarship for people who want to study in Japan. Although based in Taiwan, I've wanted to move to Japan for a long time, but also want to finish my PHD asap. SO, I applied. The downside was the timing - I live in Taiwan but had to fly home for the Interview in Portland, Oregon. No big deal, just had to shuffle my summer plans and quit my job. My application proposal was pretty good I thought, so it all comes down to the interview - which was more demanding than originally expected and came in three parts: A) English Test B) Japanese Test C) Interview. This post will talk about my experience of these steps for those who will go through the same process. Not that this experience is from an embassy in the USA and may be very different from other embassies.

A) Yes, although all applicants (there were 7 but two dropped out last minute -Yeah!) were native English speakers, we were still advised to take the 1 hour English exam. Technically it was 'optional'... but we were told it was a good idea so we all took it. Pretty simple, lots of grammar, fill in the blank, reading comprehension questions. Shouldn't be difficult for anyone.

B) Japanese Test. There are stories of people getting the scholarship without speaking ANY Japanese - which is why I applied. I knew this was a weak point, so in the days before my interview I studied as much as I could. I conquered 'hiragana' the basic phonetic alphabet so I could at least transpose the Japanese characters into their phonetic sounds. This didn't help me understand what the sounds meant, however. In 40 minutes I finished about 25% of the test and guessed at the answers. I could have transposed the whole test, or guessed at all the answers, but I figured it wouldn't matter much. If I don't know any of the answers, why guess? Obviously, I need to study more Japanese. The test was hard, is hard, and doing well on it is cool, but it isn't necessarily the most important part.

C) The Interview. This is what I was counting on the most. "When it comes down to it", I told a friend recently, "They're gonna choose the person they like the best, the person with the best personality... they're gonna go with their gut feeling. And there are ways to get people to like you..." (I'd been reading Dale Carnegie.)

Unfortunately, I talked with the other applicants beforehand and they were all smart, well groomed, interesting people. I can't say with certainty that I was any more appealing, interesting, or charismatic than any one of them. Shoot.

The questions I prepared beforehand, based on the MEXT Preparation guide Ebook were:
1) "Tell us about your research proposal", 
2) "How will it benefit your home country/Japan", 
3) "Why Japan", 
4) "What's your Japanese Level", 
5) "Why should we pick you?"

But I didn't get all of those. I was particularly proud of my 3-part answer to #5, which I never got asked and couldn't find a way to bring up. Mostly, the asked me to explain my research proposal and asked some indepth questions about it, and they asked why I had to study it in Japan. I did OK on that part. But a couple of questions threw me off, and I didn't answer very well.

The first was a vague "What interests you about the culture of Japan?".
I was not prepared for this. I didn't want to say something stupid like sushi, origami, sumo, or cherry blossoms (western stereotypes). I basically said I didn't know a lot but I was excited to learn. However, be prepared with this one! Yes, they want to hear how great Japanese culture is, and what you hope to learn on the side, and what activities you will participate in besides study! I missed the opportunity to say those things.

The second was "Tell us more about your paintings". I'm a painter and I guess I put that in my application but forgot. So they asked me about it and I wasn't ready. I should have said I would get involved in the japanese art scene, get inspiration from the temples, the culture, etc, influence my art and my work. Instead I kind of bowed out of it humbly, saying it was just a hobby, not a career, kind of not important. Missed that opportunity as well.

Basically, in the interview you need to say WHY you will go to Japan and WHAT you will do there - but this is not only about your research. Talk also about the culture, the extra-curriculars you will get involved in, sports, arts, trips, etc.

My MEXT Monbusho Study in Japan Scholarship Process Part I

I've been wanting to go to Japan since I was about 12. Since then, somehow, I keep getting sidetracked. I've been in Taiwan now for over 7 years and have still not been to Japan - worse still, I'm now 'too old' to start over teaching bratty kids, competing for jobs with fresh-faced, young and enthusiastic uni-graduates. I'm ready to finish my PHD studies, publish some articles, and get a nice, comfortable university job as a professor until I'm 80 years old.

I have been accepted to NTU, which is fantastic - it's Taiwan's #1 school and I'm lucky to get in. However, at the same time, I was turned down for the Taiwan Scholarship. Not that I blame them; as a white-faced English speaking foreigner, I automatically have the ability to make lots of money in Taiwan and take care of myself, so maybe they gave the $ to someone more deserving. Fine. Whatever.

I had made the choice to go to NTU because it made the most sense, but since I know knew I wasn't going to be on scholarship, which significantly changes the lifestyle I had planned out for myself, I'm ready to do something a little more risky. I got out the application package for the MEXT that I had prepared a few months ago.

The MEXT, or Monbukagakusho Scholarship Japanese Government Postgraduate Research Program, is a Japanese government grant that covers your tuition, cost of living, and transportation to Japan. You can get it if you're in Japan through a university, or you can get an embassy to recommend you. That's what I did... unfortunately, since not much information is easily available, I emailed my embassy contact a lot of dumb questions for about 6 months. Wasn't a smart move, but oh well. I had put together what I thought was a really strong package; I even got it translated into Japanese - but then I decided to go to NTU intead.

Now, sure that I really wanted to go to Japan if I have the opportunity, I bought a copy of the #1 Monbukagakusho Scholarship Study Guide, after reading it I found out I'd gone about my application all wrong. I was talking about why I wanted to go there rather than what I wanted to do there. The MEXT is a research scholarship, which means you need to make a research proposal: abstract, keywords, thesis statement, study plan and timeline, etc. That's the important part.

Also, although I know what I want to study, there was no clear connection with Japan other than I wanted to live there. After reading the ebook and updating my application, it's now reasonably strong; I tied in what I had plan to study with a specific and notable piece of Japanese culture - so now I'm able to list my research benefits which is super important.

Anyway, at the point I've turned in the application and am getting ready for the interview - I was told that I actually SHOULD try to find an advisor in Japan (I'd misunderstood this before) so in the next week I'll be frantically sending out emails to everybody in Japan. Yikes.

Art Exhibitions in Taiwan (Taipei, Kaohsiung)

I have two art exhibitions going up in Taiwan. The first is at Alleycats HuaShan in Taipei. It's a nice art area made from a previous wine factory. Stop by to see the paintings and eat some pizza. It will be open until early June, the flier is up above.
謬象 德瑞克。墨菲
開幕派對 4/25 （日）8-10PM
巷貓 – 華山店:
台北市八德路一段一號

The next is in Kaohsiung, at the Warehouse art gallery. This is near Pier 2, also an artistic area, with some great galleries and art stuff. If you're in Taiwan and want to see some contemporary art or surreal oil paintings, please stop by to see my art exhibitions.

德瑞克墨菲 (Derek Murphy)
展覽將於 5/15 (六) 晚上6~9:30隆重開幕
歡迎喜好藝術的朋友前往參觀
本期展覽將持續展覽至5月29日
千萬別錯過喔!
地址: 鹽埕區莒光街67號, 靠近捷運鹽埕埔站


You can see more of my work at www.derekmurphyart.com

Doing business in Taiwan: Dealing with Men vs. Women

I'm going to throw a cultural stereotype/generalization at you, which I think may mostly be true.

Recently I needed to get some printing done. I went to my usual store, which is run by a bunch of teenage girls, and was quickly frustrated. They had no customer service, I was always waiting, they didn't try hard to figure out what I wanted, and rather than offering solutions I got a lot of negativity. They didn't know how to print just what I wanted, how I wanted, in the right size, with the right paper... and in the end, when I said I needed it in 2 days (by Saturday) they said it was impossible. So I walked out.

Down the street I found another shop. A 40+ year old guy helped me out. He was very helpful, got exactly what I need ordered. At first he made a big deal about Saturday being impossible, but I kept pushing and finally he said he'd get it done. I was very excited; he'd shown me samples - if my stuff looked like the samples it would be great. Very high quality.

Unfortunately.... to get things printed well shops need to send them out to a factory for laser printing. There's a 2 day wait that can't be sped up. Because I had pushed so hard and the guy wanted me business, he took the job but printed the fliers in store on his copiers. Result: thinner paper weight, much lowered quality. He even squished my file to make it fit the standard printing size, so the pictures were squished. Not horrible, but not the quality that I had wanted. Yes, it's my fault for being in a rush and feeling like I deserve to be able to break the rules and get things done faster. But still.

Cultural Stereotypes about Taiwan/Asia that I've learned from the experience.

1) Girls are taught to follow rules. They are slow, insecure, can't think outside the box, follow the instructions and guidelines. However - they probably have learned the 'right' way to do it and that way may really be the best way. They probably know what they're doing. It's best to conform to them and their suggestion than make them conform to what you want; you may be wrong/not understand why they think you need to do it their way.

2) Guys are more inventive. They'll cut corners. They'll give you what you ask for. They're less concerned with making the best product and more concerned with meeting your requirements. They may be more likely to cheat or scam you with less quality.

Also - the men are often the bosses: so if they scam or cheat you, it's because they are directly getting the extra profit.

Meanwhile women are the employees. They aren't interested in scheming you out of your money - because they won't see any of it anyway. They are concerned with giving you the best product.

Thus: When doing business in Asia/Taiwan, deal with the women if you want the best. Deal with the men if you want something faster, cheaper, or more customized.

Chinese Marble Fu dog with baby sculpture

Beautiful and unique marble statue; probably used to be a set but just have the one. Discovered it in the ruins of an old house in Southern Taiwan. Pretty sure it's marble. Extremely heavy. Base is 12x6.5. Signed with Chinese character stamp carved in.

Not sure about the history...

18th century Japanese Ivory owl carving

Recently inherited this piece from the family estate; was given to my mother as a child from an older relative. There is a signature on the base in (japanese?) characters. Based on similar items, my best guess is that this is carved Japanese ivory, probably 18th/19th century. The eyes and feet are painted yellow, a little carelessly. This may have been done later. The feet are metal/ivory.

The piece is pretty heavy; maybe mammoth?

What do you think it is? Value estimate?

12th Century Khmer Bronze Figure of Buddha Muchalinda

I've had this piece for years and am suddenly aware that it might be very valuable; if authentic. The style of the piece is most similar (identical) to pieces from the 12th century Cambodia, Angkor Thom or Khmer region. It's 16" tall, the base is 4.5x3". It is "well cast and sensitively modeled, with Buddha seated in meditation on the coils of Muchalinda, rising to form a seven-headed hood sheltering Buddha, his face with a serene expression with downcast eyes and hands held in his lap, the faces of the nagas well defined and with incised scales retaining original gilding, with a smooth blue green patina  (which results from azurite leeching out of the metal over the centuries)" (description modified from similar item).

I have no way of telling whether it is truly 8 centuries old or was cleverly made to look that way; I need an expert appraiser for this. However, I've seen no 'fakes' or reproductions that look like this; everything I can find that's similar sells for anywhere between $1000 to $50,000... My piece is unique in that it breaks into 3 pieces - base, seated buddha, and 7 naga backpiece. I have seen other statues of the same period where the Buddha also was loose from its supporting stand. So what do you think? Authentic? Value?

MORE INFORMATION:
In Buddhist iconography, naga serpents bring wisdom and protection. Mucalinda, Muchalinda or Mucilinda is the name of the specific naga depicted in this statue. This particular naga protected the Buddha from the a rain storm after the Buddha's enlightenment. Here's the story: four weeks after Sakyamuni Buddha began meditating under the Bodhi tree, the heavens darkened for seven days, and a prodigious rain descended. The mighty king of serpents, Mucalinda, came from beneath the earth, and protected with his hood He who is the source of all protection. When the great storm cleared, the serpent king assumed his human form, bowed before the Buddha, and returned in joy to his palace.

There are numerous extant Cambodian images of this configuration because it was the focus of a cult during the reign of the Cambodian king Jayavarman VII, who ruled the Khmer empire from about 1181 to 1218. Although this scene had been depicted earlier in South and Southeast Asian art, it was the Khmer who popularized this particular image of the Buddha seated under the Naga's 7-Headed canopy. The reasons that Jayavarman chose to stress the Muchilinda Buddha remain speculative. Snakes were associated with healing, and perhaps because Jayavarman may have been lame, he emphasized healing, as indicated by his construction of hospitals throughout the kingdom.