As my parents and I enjoyed breakfast one morning at a quaint hotel recently, my Dad and I were discussing various aspects of universities and how they differ from place to place. We were talking about Cambridge (the pass or fail system) when a gentleman sitting at a table nearby politely interjected. He introduced himself and stated that he was a Professor of Astronomy at a University in Colorado; he was intrigued by our conversation. He turned out to be a very interesting guy, and somehow we got into a discussion about Alaska. He shared that each year hundreds of pregnant Japanese women migrate to Alaska to have their babies since it’s said that giving birth to a child under the Northern Lights signifies that they will have a fortunate life. When he found out what my name was, he was pretty fascinated by the coincidence and handed me his business card, saying that we should all keep in touch. Apparently, almost every year, he and his colleagues, and students travel to the wilderness of Alaska! Meeting him and hearing his stories made me want to fulfill this goal of going there and seeing the Northern Lights even more!!
