Summer Spotlight: Juan Pablo Gordillo

This has been, by far, one of the best summers of my life. I’ve had the privilege and luck to accompany Professor Pierce and a group of students from the Oil, Gas, and Energy Law Society at Washburn University School of Law to different events and conferences held throughout the country. First, I attended the 2013 Hartrick Symposium: Career Path for Young Attorneys in the Energy Sector, held in Tulsa, Oklahoma. It was an amazing experience and an eye opening conference. Later in the summer, I traveled to Spokane, Washington to attend the 59th Annual Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Institute. The conference topics were incredibly interesting, from water rights to mineral law, and environmental law to oil and gas law. Attending this institute not only made me realize that this was the right career, but also that Washburn University School of Law was the right choice. The field of Oil, Gas, and Minerals is a fruitful path for attorneys, and I am excited that it is the path I’ve chosen in order to fulfill my career as an attorney.

Now for the extra fun part of my summer! In early May and part of June, I traveled to Japan. Yup that’s right, Japan! It was my second time there and it was definitely as fun as I remembered. I spent the first couple of weeks with my wife, visiting friends and host-families, and sightseeing along the southern island of Kyushu and to the main island of Honshu, before joining a group of students from the Washburn study abroad program. The University of Fukuoka hosted the two-week program for Washburn students; we met with local university students and enjoyed a variety of courses, meetings and other events. I also enjoyed an amazing demonstration by the Fukuoka Taiko Club (Japanese drums), it was intense and full of energy. Later in the summer, I went to see a baseball game, the Fukuoka Hawks play against the Hiroshima Carps. The energy of the fans is from another world, they never stopped cheering and chanting, not for a single moment of the game.

The whole experience was a blast. During my trip, I saw an array of temples and shrines; my favorite was Kiyomizu-dera, a beautiful Buddhist temple. (Kiyomizu-dera Wiki). I also got the opportunity to touch the famous Miyajima Tori-I (Tori-i Wiki) and was able to pet a buck, which tried to take my ice cream from my hands and instead ate our map of the island! He then proceeded to follow me for a couple of blocks expecting some food. During my 6-week trip in Japan, I traveled to Fukuoka, Sasebo, Nagasaki, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo, and other smaller towns in between. Wouldn’t you know that even half-way way across the globe, I got to meet with Professor Glashausser for lunch in Tokyo while he was teaching at Waseda University for the summer. He took me to his favorite Ramen Shop, Ippudo, it was the best Ramen I’ve ever tasted. Ippudo is so famous that they have shops all over the world, even New York City! (Ippudo NY).

During the trip I saw magnificent Japanese architecture, met amazing people, enjoyed a few dips in different natural hot springs, and ate the most delicious foods. Undoubtedly, the best trip in my life that I’ve experienced … so far.

Now during the start of my 2L year, I am anxious to get into the routine and hit the ground running. I will be working for the Law School Clinic as an administrative assistant, where I will be able to assist the professors and 3L students working there on the various cases. As for the incoming 1L students, good luck, work hard and don’t forget to have some fun from time to time! If you have any questions about what to expect on your first year or anything really, don’t hesitate to contact me.

See you all at the Law School!