The End

Sadly, this is going to be my last post on this blog. I had a lot of fun writing in Japan but now that I'm back in Canada, I don't really have much to update. And I'm pretty busy studying Japanese and taking care of things like: buying a cellphone, registering for classes, and putting away stuff.

I said that I wanted to discuss the differences between Canadians and Japanese, and here are a few of them:

- Directness: Canadians are in general more direct than Japanese. Especially if it's a more sensitive subject, Japanese will take quite some time to approach the subject. And rather than saying no or contradicting your ideas (which is considered rude), Japanese will use expressions like: "Oh really?" or "I see" and nod in agreement even though they don't agree with what you're saying. On the other hand, some Canadians I know will flat out tell you that you're wrong and argue with you if your opinions differ.

- Reactions to foreigners: Japan is very homogeneous. When I first arrived there, I had quite some difficulty telling people apart because they all have 1) black straight hair 2) slanted dark-colored eyes and fairly small body frames. 6 feet foreigners with blond hair and blue eyes will find it impossible to go anywhere in Japan without being stared at by the Japanese because they are so different, like beings of another planet or galaxy. Here in Canada, which is described as a "vertical mosaic" (a mosaic of different ethnic, language, and religious groups), "foreigners" are the norm rather than the exception.

- Manners: Japanese don't hold the door open for you unlike a lot of Canadians do. In Canada, it's common courtesy to hold the door open for the next person behind you but in Japan, there are so many people that I feel it would almost be counter-productive, slowing down people rather then helping them.

As you see, there are some minor differences, but overall, it doesn't matter where on the globe you are, people are the same. They laugh, they smile, they cry, they're curious, they give you directions when you're lost, they arrive late at meetings, and they are sometimes so tired they can sleep standing up. And sometimes it's seeing those similarities (rather than the differences) which makes traveling so fun. : D

So goodbye everyone! Thank you for reading and commenting. Thank you for nagging me when I didn't update fast enough. : p  And don't forget, you can always go back and read old posts whenever you like because the blog will remain online. Sayonara!

Exams are over!

Finally!!! After a week of late nights studying, exams are finally over!!! And the studying paid off. Here are the results:

My final grade for the course: 96.5% Go me! : )

And concerning the Japanese Language Proficency Test (JLPT) Level 2 : When we first took the exam in April, I only managed to score 157.21 out of 400. And to pass, you need 240 or more points. I was far from that. On Monday we took the test again to see whether or not we'd improved over the course of four months. And.... I scored 298,21 out of 400, easily passing the exam with almost 60 points extra. Hurrah!!!

But the studying isn't over by far. I really want to keep improving my Japanese. I also plan on taking the JLPT #1 (the highest level). But when I go back, it's definitely going to be more difficult to keep improving. For one thing, I'll be studying on my own, not in a class. I've bought plenty of great textbooks to help me study but it will be up to me to keep motivated. The environment is completely different as well. In Japan, I can just go take a walk around campus and listen to conversations in Japanese. Or turn on the TV and listen to the news in Japanese. That's why they say that the best way to learn a language is to live in that country. Even if you're not taking any classes, you learn a few words here and there just by hearing them everyday spoken by the people around you. So I'll have to work twice as hard to maintain what I've learned.

Classes and my best friend the Internet

I'm really enjoying my Japanese class. At first, I felt a bit overwhelmed because the pace is fast and some of the other students have quite a larger vocabulary and are better able to express themselves. But now that I've gotten used to it, I really enjoy going to class. We have four different teachers which really helps to keep things from getting boring. I haven't fallen asleep which is a miracle. Last semester, I dozed off at least once every class. This time, my class is either so interesting or so packed with material that I can't afford dozing off, even for a few minutes. The other students all have great personalities so it's fun to exchange our ideas and opinions during discussions. I come back from school feeling uplifted. I had forgotten how stimulating it is to learn something new, even if it's just a new grammar rule. It just opens so many opportunities because with that grammar for example, I can say so much more. Soon I won't be able to stop talking : P

Now, sometimes in class, the explanations given by the teachers are not clear enough for me or not sufficient. So since I've been here, I've been searching the Internet for resources to help me. And I've fallen in love with the Internet. There are so many great resources on the Internet, it's incredible! I've found several great English-Japanese dictionaries. I've found many websites explaining grammar points, including example sentences and conjugation forms. I've also found a cool website that allows you to research kanji by drawing them in a little box on the website (using the computer mouse). That's really great when I don't know how to read the kanji. Because I've got the image of the kanji, I can draw it, and as I draw it, the website will narrow down the possible kanjis for me to choose from.

Now yesterday, I discovered two other great resources:

- Vocab Bubble: a program I installed which appears as a little icon along with the other icons at the bottom right of my screen. Every minute or so, a text bubble will pop out with a new vocabulary word, along with its definition in English and what function it serves in a sentence (ex. adjective, noun, verb, etc.) Great to review vocabulary without having to concentrate very hard. The word that just popped up now is : いただきます: Itadakimasu, which is an expression of gratitude said before meals.

- Flashcardmachine.com: a website that allows you to create your own flashcards. Recently, there have been tons of new vocabulary in class and it really hinders my learning if I don't know what they mean. I can't even  begin to understand the grammar that's being explained because I can't even make sense of the sentence. So I thought, what better way to remember the vocabulary than using good old flashcards. Writing them would be tedious... so I googled "create your own flashcards" and came up with this website. I can input the kanji characters on one side of the flashcard and then the definition on the other. Then I can have fun testing myself over and over. You can also choose to study flashcards from their database that have been submitted by users. This can be useful for anybody wanting to memorize data (like naming all the presidents of the United States! Good luck! ; )

Second semester

Last week, I took the Japanese placement test again. The test helps to decide which class is best suited for the student's current level of Japanese knowledge. Last semester, I was in 7A class. And this semester... I'm in class 3!!!! (There are 8 classes, class 1 being the highest). I'm quite proud of myself. It shows how much my Japanese has improved. I had asked my teacher at the end of last semester which class she thought I could enter, and she had answered class 3. I hadn't believed her. But here I am, in class 3!

But it is not going to be easy... It's only been two days since school has started and I already have so much homework. There is a lot of vocabulary I don't know so I'm often unsure in class. We have kanji tests 3 times a week. Today we studied how to write on Japanese writing paper (which looks like the paper used for graphs, full of squares). Every character has to occupy one square but then there are certain rules about where to place commas, periods, parenthesis, etc. Some characters also take up only a half or a quarter of the square. It's going to be hard keeping up. Not just keep up, but teachers also expect students to prepare for the lessons ahead. If I only had studying to worry about, it would already be a challenge. But with judo, it's near impossible. But I think I'm going to be ok. With good time management and good work efficiency, you can accomplish a lot. And the upside is that my Japanese is going to improve a lot : )

まだまだ (mada mada) = You still have lots to learn

Recently, I've been feeling pretty pumped about studying Japanese. I feel like something inside of me is screaming out : "Study Japanese! Keep learning!". Or maybe it's the surroundings here in Japan that are subliminally tricking me into thinking that way. Anyhow, I suddenly am feeling very enthusiastic about learning, even more than usual (for those who know me : p ). I also bought two wonderful books at Kinokuniya this past weekend. One grammar dictionary and a book to learn 1 100 kanji characters. The best place to buy textbooks and other resources to learn Japanese is ironically in Japan. Normally, I think it's more common for people to study the language in their home country before coming to Japan, like I did. But if you're thinking of studying Japanese, I now suggest you come to Japan first to buy the great books they have here.

Part of why I'm so enthusiastic about learning is probably because I'm starting to feel quite at home here. I'm starting to understand more and more every day. I can ask people for directions if I'm lost. I know which train to take if I want to go somewhere. I know where to buy what I need. Without having to concentrate as much, I can hear and understand Japanese a lot better. Japanese comes much more easily to me now. Sometimes a Japanese word will pop in my mind before an English word!

But at the same time, whenever I want to pat myself on the shoulder for what I've learnt so far, I realize how little I know, how much more there is to study. And I'm scared I won't have enough time to become as fluent as I want to be. There is so much to learn. Japanese is really a hard language.

For example, they have so many words to say the same thing. "To arrive", "to do", "to go", there are so many expressions used to convey those meanings.

Then there are different forms of Japanese, depending on whom you're speaking with. If you're speaking to someone higher in rank, you have to use teinei (polite language) and keigo (honorific language). In class we learn to speak teinei most of the time. And then when I go to judo class or converse with other people my age in Japanese, I get all confused because they use another form, a more casual form of speaking. So I'm constantly having to think about which forms I'm supposed to use.

Classes are going well. I love learning so it's like a hobby for me. We have four different teachers, and today's teacher, Sakamoto sensei, is my least favorite. She speaks very fast and doesn't try to simplify her vocabulary for us so I don't understand what she's saying about half the time. Sometimes, a student will ask her the definition of a certain word in Japanese. And even though I know the definition, I often don't understand what she says! One thing I like is that she's a bit clueless about technology. So whenever she has to use the stereo or recorder to play some dialogues or listening exercises, it usually takes her quite some time. I've been using that time to start (and sometimes finish!) my homework for the day lol. Talk about being efficient ; )

Yesterday evening, I went out to eat with Natsumi, one of the judo trainers, and we had some noodles. Even though I know it's a custom in Japan, I was still surprised to hear some slurping noises coming from across the table. In Canada, we're accustomed to not making any sound when we eat. However, here in Japan, it's acceptable and even encouraged to slurp when you eat noodles. It signifies that the food is good. However, it was difficult for me to bring myself to make some sound. I'm so used to not making any sound. So that's another thing I'll have to practice : )

Living in constant confusion

I hit a low point a few days ago. Since I arrived in Japan, I've gotten accustomed to not always understanding what people are saying to me. It's amazing how I've managed to get by so far using gestures and logical reasoning. But the other day, the bank left a message to call them back. When I did, I couldn't understand anything they told me. Then I handed the receiver to the dorm lady so she could take the message for me. But then, when she tried to transmit the message to me, I couldn't understand once again. It's so frustrating not being able to understand, especially when it comes to important things like passports or money.

But then again, it's important to take things in perspective. Compared to when I first came, about a month ago, my Japanese has improved leaps and bounds. I speak with less hesitation (even though I'm always searching for words), have increased my vocabulary enormously and can read a lot more kanji characters. And that's only after one month. I still have about 11 more to go. So I'm trying to stay positive and just keep absorbing everything I see and hear. Except the rain. I'm trying to veer away from the rain : p (which is impossible by the way)

Subtleties of the Japanese language

Japanese is a very complex language. For example, we're currently learning about transitive and intransitive verbs. For those who aren't sure what the difference between transitive and intransitive verbs is, Wikipedia can give you a hand: "a transitive verb is a verb that requires both a direct subject and one or more objects". Or as I see it: transitive = action verbs ; intransitive = passive verbs.

In English, we'll say:

1) I open the door. (action)
2) The door is open. (passive state or condition)

We use the same verb "to open" but we simply rearrange the rest of the sentence to convey the different meaning. Well.. it's not as simple in Japanese. In Japanese, different verbs are used depending whether the subject (i.e. the door) is opened by someone (action) or whether the speaker simply wishes to describe the door's current state (passive). In the first scenario, akemasu must be used, and akimasu in the second. A couple more examples if you're interested:

to drop: otoshimasu ; to be dropped: ochimasu
to turn on: tsukemasu ; to be on: tsukimasu
to close: shimemasu ; to be closed: shimarimasu

... and many more. That means more vocabulary to be learnt, memorized, and crammed into my already pretty full brain. But supposedly, we only use a small percentage of our brains... so I can't really say I've used up my brain's full capacity... yet : p

Learning Japanese also has its little moments. The other day, a student from England mispronounced the work jikan and instead softened the first syllable to make out the word chikan. The teacher started laughing hysterically along with a few other students. Wondering what was so funny, I looked up chikan in my dictionary. The definition: sexual pervert; molester. That explained it ; ) lol

It's also funny when the Korean students in my class speak in Japanese and I can't understand a thing. I wouldn't even think it was Japanese if I heard it outside the classroom.

Time to study again. Coming up this weekend: shopping in Shinjuku with my roommate and going to watch some of Tokai's judo girls fight in a tournament. : D