Our group, which includes three students (Nguyen Thi Anh – class 65K, Pham My Hanh – 66K and Vu Trung Hieu – 66K) from Faculty of Biology (Hanoi National University of Education – HNUE), participated in International Marine Biology Course hosted by Sado Marine Biological Station (SMBS) of Niigata University from July 28^th to July 31^st, 2018. Although the course has lasted for several days, it did create an opportunity to promote our capabilities on the future career by providing not only theoretical but also practical lectures. In addition, the course also gave us a wonderful chance to discover one another’s culture.

We arrived at Sado Island in the afternoon of 28^th July. At 17:00 we had a tour provided by the MBS. Later we attended a lecture called “Characteristic of Japan Sea and marine animals” given by Prof. Ando and then Dr. Kitahashi delivered a lecture about animal classification. Both of the lectures were relatively short but it still provided lots of useful information which made the course effective.

	Fig. 1: Professor Ando is talking about the features of the Sea of Japan

	Fig. 2: Welcome party with the dish named “Okonomiyaki” made by all participants 

On the next day morning, we had a lecture which was entitled “Ecology needs physiology: How animals can maintain body fluid homeostasis in diverse habitat” given by Prof. Yoshio from the University of Tokyo. After that, we watched the artificial fertilization of sea urchin followed by observing early development of embryos. In the afternoon, we had a lecture by Prof. Hatha who told about “Whether the warming Arctic becomes more hospitable environment for health significant Bacteria?”. After the lecture, we took part in animals sampling by snorkeling at a rocky shore then observed and sketched.

 

  

	Figs. 3-4: Animal and plankton samplings at the nearby area 

	Fig. 5: Sketching instruction  

On the third morning, Prof. Yong from East Carolina University gave a lecture about “Control of ovulation in zebrafish”. The lecture was followed by plankton sampling and observing. In the afternoon, we had an outdoor activity at Sado Gold Mine. We finished the working day with a Dr. Tran’s lecture when a basic knowledge about marine biology was provided.

  

Figs. 6 & 7: Outgoing activities in Sado Island

	Fig. 8: Lecture by Dr. Tran who made the class more active and relaxed 

The last lecture was presented by Prof. Shajahan from Bangladesh Agricultural University. The lecture provided effects of temperature and pesticides on blood physiology of fish. Once again we went snorkeling and collecting animal samples at a rocky shore. After lunch, we had some time to prepare individual and group presentations. After the course had completely ended, we cleaned the laboratory and everyone joined in a BBQ party and had memorable time together.

 

  

	Figs. 9 & 10: Students from HNUE had individual and group presentations

	Fig. 11: BBQ party for celebrating the successful course 

Three of us did have such an unforgettable and precious experience thanks to the help of Prof. Ando, Dr. Iida, Dr. Kitahashi, Dr. Omori and other staff members in SMBS of Niigata University as well as other professors and participants from the US, Hong Kong, Taiwan, South Korea, Malaysia, India, Japan and Bangladesh. Furthermore, we were thankful to JST Sakura Science Plan for sponsoring the course. We greatly appreciate Dr. Tran for guiding in this course and the Faculty of Biology (HNUE) for having offered us such favorable conditions.

 

	Fig.12: The course closed with a group photo