master japanese

I’ve been teaching myself Japanese for the past year. At first, it was more of a vanity thing and to impress girls. But, as time went on, I came to realize that I love the language and culture more that I knew. So I’ve immersed myself in all things Japanese. Its even safe to say, that I’ve thought and pondered to myself a few times in Japanese. I take that as a really good sign that my language comprehension is progressing. I’ve set myself up with a method that I call: “Actively Learning.” Everyday I am learning something new in Japanese. I listen to J-Wave, watch the news and KeyHole TV and eat with “Hashi” just about whenever I can. I’ve immersed myself in the language as much as I can. I’ve found that “active learning” is helping to keep me on the path to my future success with fully understanding Japanese. Its taken me a long time and tons of times of wanting to give up, to get to the point where I am today. After a year of learning and comprehending, I can finally say that I can casually speak the language. I’ve ordered my food and drink in Japanese and can recognize kanji and kanji radicals and even watch doramas and anime without the subs on. I’m really proud of myself and I won’t stop until I reach every top that I come across. I think I made a big improvement when I wrote my first “Uta” in Japanese. I’m not 100% sure of the translation but I’d like to share it anyway. Its called: “Aki no Nici”

Watashi wa suteppu shimasen
deshita natto wa ichou
to no gaikan wo tsuuchi
odoroki ga hiroga ruka
anata no kao ni desu ka?
Aki no setto to shite
kaze no koto sou hiki
wo mo tara shita chikadu
ku watashi ni watashi wa
suteppu shimasen deshita
natto ni wa ichou to no
gaikan wo tsuuchi odoroku
no wa anata no kao ni
hiroga ruka desu ka?
Sorekara watashi no shita
de anata ni kisu nagare
ruka sakura to egao wo mise ta

Did I not step
on the ginkgo nuts,
and notice the look
of surprise that spread
across your face?
As the autumn set
wind swept about you
and brought you
closer to me,
did I not step
on the ginkgo nuts
and notice the look
of surprise that
spread across your face?
Then,
I kissed you under
the flowing sakura,
and you smiled.

This is a shining achievement for me. I think that it takes more than just book reading and a few classes a week to learn a language progressively. I hope everyone tries “Actively Learning” a language.

This is the day that I start learning my Japanese. I am planning to master it in 1 year, and hopefully could pass the JLPT 1.

Generally a detailed study plan is necessary, but all that I have set right now, is just about reading, lot of reading, as much reading as possbile, take every minute reading Japanese.

First step, 1000 kanji in 6 months.

I need more perseverance! To strengthen my conviction:

1)This IS the language of high-tech future

2)I wanna live on anime & matcha ice cream till I am old

3)Their letter system is so cute

I have no excuse for not mastering this, since I’ve been reading/writing/speaking it(casually) for over 15 years now…(_)
I was proud of the fact that i can carry a conversation in 5 languages without ever taking any lessons…
...but I should just take a course or something and have Japanese(my favorite) be the third language that I’m perfectly fluent in…(sigh)

(I’ve been saying this for YEARS)

Recently I discovered www.guidetojapanese.org and especially www.JapanesePod101.com – some of the most useful resources for learning the language & culture on your own terms. I’ve been using the podcasts for about a week (doing chinese at the same time) and I made much more progress than I made in years before. Now I don’t need to MAKE TIME for learning anymore (I work full time), I can learn on the way to work, even at work, at home, while shopping… very efficient indeed.

As for JLPT, I’m not sure which level I will be aiming for (4 or 3?) I’ve yet to see how fast my progress will be, I give it a couple of months.

I applied for a university course too but got no reply yet. Wonder if I really have a chance as a mature student few years out of education… and a foreigner to boot! Oh well, fingers crossed. :D

Finally, I received my exam result for BJT.

It was more than what I expected. I aimed J3 but I couldn’t believe my eye when I saw the number 2.

yay! im gonna be taking Japanese next semester

I passed JLPT level 3 on last year’s sitting, and this 2007 December I’m going for level 2.

I hardly had any time finding sensei, at least a sensible one yet less expensive.

I thought of seeking help from some of my Japanese friends to find someone who is good at teaching Japanese, not just daily conversation but at an advanced level.

Today, I couldn’t believe my luck. As I was reading email at work, my Japanese friend took a look at my schedule book and saw one of my weekly goals (I put small goals each week in my schedule). She said, “You’re looking for a Japanese teacher? I can help teach you if you like. You can come over to my house sometimes.”

I couldn’t believe what she said. Although I have been looking for a professional teacher with my hectic working schedule, it’s difficult for me to set time. But since I know what I want to learn (syllabus) and my friend is working at the same place, it would be easy to adjust the time.

Thank God.