Google Japanese translation and second haircut

Google is an amazing tool. However, I want to warn you about the translation tool. I'm currently working on a speech because we have a speech contest coming up. And of course, the speech has to be in Japanese. So, to start, I wrote my ideas in English and then translated those into Japanese. I sometimes used the Google translation tool to help me when I wasn't sure. And let me tell you, Google has its own personal version of Japanese.

For simple sentences, no problem.

I went to school yesterday. --> Google translation: きのう、学校にいきました。(Of course, you can't read that, but it means the same thing as I wrote in English.

However, for more complex sentences, it comes up with weird sentences... but because I don't understand everything yet, even though I know it probably isn't right, I'm not sure how to say it correctly so I just copied and pasted those sentences as is into my speech. And when I asked my roommate to help me correct my speech, she laughed at a few sentences because the sentences made no sense at all. So, I just wanted to warn you, Google translation (or any other translation tool) can be quite useful. But because you can't always translate literally the meaning of a sentence from one language to another, some very interesting sentences (possibly the start of a new language! : p ) will come up, so err on the side of caution please.

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On Sunday, I went with my roommate to a hair salon, my second haircut in Japan. It's getting so hot now and my hair is especially thick and heavy so I thought it best to cut it a bit shorter for the upcoming humid summer days. And here is the final product:

The overall length is shorter, and I also have bangs for the first time, a slightly shorter part of hair at the front of my forehead (for those who don't know what bangs are). I also got my hair thinned out, meaning that they went through with scissors to cut off excess (and heavy!) hair. It definitely feels much lighter. The hairdresser was really nice and took time to listen to what I wanted. Overall, I'm quite satisfied with it and I really enjoy having haircuts in Japan. I find the hairstylists are more competent and put more thought into how they approach the cut. In Canada, I've had times where my hairstylist was distracted, or talked to a fellow hairstylist about her boyfriend during the whole cut.

Kareoke and getting a haircut in Japan

Yesterday, three friends and I went to Hon-Atsugi for some kareoke. We sang for about 2 hours I think. I finally sang my first song in Japanese. But I'm afraid it isn't really a recent song... It's a song I listened to in the car when my dad drove us to Winnipeg for judo. And no offense to my dad's music taste (I think he has great taste), but the Japanese people my age have never heard of it. I'm going to have to learn a couple more recent songs. That's something I haven't done yet, immerse myself in the pop culture. I've been given some names of popular artists but I haven't had the time yet to look them up on the Internet.

Zara (left) and Kaya singing

After kareoke, Natsumi and I went to a hair salon to get a haircut. It was very different from in Canada.

Firstly, because we were new clients, we had to fill out a form about our hair's history. Did you ever color your hair? How often do you visit a hair salon? Then there were also questions about what we wanted done to our hair that day. What kind of cut do you want? Do you want your hairstylist to give you some advice? And then, more specifically, what kind of hairstylist we wanted for our haircut. Do you want a hairstylist who does the job quickly? Someone with great skill? Do you prefer someone who talks a lot or someone who works quietly? It was a bit overwhelming lol. I'm not used to having to answer those questions. In a way, I think it's a good idea. It helps to make a better match between the hairstylist and the client. I've had my share of hairstylists and there were times when we just didn't click or I didn't like the hairstylist's method. So I do find it useful. It is consistent with the Japanese culture of wanting to satisfy the client's needs.

And I am happy with the haircut. I wanted to cut it a bit shorter, make it lighter, but still keep some length to be able to put my hair up in a ponytail for judo. After the cut, I was even given a little hair treatment, a short neck and shoulder massage, and they straightened my hair. It was a lot more expensive than what I'm used to paying in Canada. In Canada, in my small town, you can get a haircut for as little as 10-15$.  But I think the 35 $ I paid yesterday was worth it.

Natsumi