I visited Japan and Chubu University first time in May 2014. In the same year, I was honored to be selected as the 40th Kohei Miura Visiting Professor at Chubu University and spent a month during the winter break there. Hosted by Dr. Je-Tae Woo, I collaborated on a project to use natural products for the chemoprevention of UV-induced skin cancer. Our collaboration was subsequently funded by Chubu University, which enabled our research investigator, Dr. Lingying Tong, to visit Chubu University in 2017. Chubu University holds a special place in my heart. Since 2014, I visited Chubu University annually for five consecutive years until the pandemic in early 2020. In addition to my visits to Chubu University, I have also hosted visitors from the institution. Dr. Je-Tae Woo spent a summer at our institute in 2014, followed by Dr. Genji Imokawa in the summer of 2017. Recently, I hosted Dr. Akiko Noda, the Glidden Visiting Professor, in 2022. I also hosted Honoka Nakashima, a graduate student from Dr. Noda's lab, who conducted research in my laboratory. Our joint exploration into the effects of solar UV radiation on hypertension has resulted in the recent submission of a manuscript, marking another significant milestone in our ongoing scientific journey. Visiting Japan and interacting with my Japanese colleagues sparked my fascination with Japanese culture and ignited my desire to learn Japanese. Last year, I ranked among the top 1% of Duolingo users worldwide in foreign language learning.