Search Results for: how to

You know, one interesting similarity about American and Japanese elementary school graduations is that there is a song that the students have to sing. I must be getting old or something because I can’t remember what my 7th grade, elementary school graduation song was**. I want to say it was Michael Jackson’s “Heal The World,” […]

I’m really making an effort to improve how well I can communicate in Japanese. It’s something I think about on a regular basis. I want to be able to say exactly what I want to say and have people understand. There are days when I feel like the goal is so far away. There are […]

Mom always taught me not to slurp my noodles, but the cool thing about being in Japan is that the slurping rule goes completely out the window. If you’ve ever been to a Japanese restaurant that serves any kind of noodles, or if you’ve been to a Japanese friend’s house for a meal, you probably […]

Genki One is one of the most recognized, beginner Japanese textbooks for a reason. It’s extremely effective. For those of you who want to skip the Genki textbook review and grab the book now, you can click here. For everyone else, let’s dive in…If you’re an expat who didn’t major in Japanese during your college […]

I have a treat for you today!! I know I said I would finish my coverage of the the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show, and in a way this is a a part of that. When I went to the Tokyo Motor Show 2012, I got an unexpected surprise at the Honda showcase area. Just after […]

No? Well I have. Hachinoko, 蜂の子, are one of the unspoken delicacies of Japan. I tried hachinoko for the very first time while having dinner with my friend, Gareth, my student & friend Kyoko, and her family. We had already eaten our fill of the wonderful spread that she had prepared, so we had some […]

Okay so on my way back from the Sony audition, I went into one of the convenience stores to grab something to eat. I grabbed an onigiri (torii gomoku, 鳥居五目because it’s my favorite), some mentos, and some water. I walked the counter and made my purchase, turned to walk away and did a full spin […]

So I had to get my Alien Registration Card updated last Thursday and it was definitely the highlight of my day. My manager, Tomomi Sensei, and were supposed to leave at 3:00 in order to get to City Hall by 3:15. Needless to say we actually left around 3:20 or so and ended up getting […]

I remember getting to Japan in early January, arriving at Narita Airport and being greeted by Ian Sensei, one of the trainers at my Eikaiwa. I also remember all of the other trainees getting to the airport around the same time. I met people from Australia, Britain, and America. It kind of felt like an […]

(updating…) When I teach English classes, I often ask my students what they did over the weekend. Usually I get the standard, “Nothing special.” response and that’s the end of it. Yesterday, I had a very small class (only two students) and I tried asking the very same question; it’s a great way to get […]

Time and time again, I’ve asked what I can do to improve my Japanese, and I know many other foreigners wonder the the same thing. Occasionally I will get some great advice about different Japanese programs to watch, like Doraemon, ドラえもん, or Sazae San, さざえさん, because the Japanese is potentially much easier to understand than […]

This is my first attempt at job hunting since I’ve been in Japan. Originally I came to Japan because of my employer, so it all worked out. But, now, it’s time to cut my leash and seek a new job. So how’s it going so far? Well, it’s good and bad. It’s good because there […]

In a world of apps, gadgets, gizmos, and software, the old, faithful, paper Japanese textbook doesn’t always get the love it deserves. Maybe you’ve even come across people who have nothing good to say about textbooks: “You can’t learn real Japanese from a book!” “Japanese people don’t actually speak like that.”
“You’re learning Japanese, huh? “Oh […]

I was going back through some old pictures of mine and came across some funny, Japanese English gyms. For those who have been here for quite some time, you probably know quite well that you’re bound to bump into some silly English word or phrase. This is the reason I love smart phones so much. […]

Renting in Japan can be extremely expensive, in large part because of that pain-in-the-butt key money. This one time, sometimes exorbitantly expensive, fee is a major reason why many foreigners may feel hesitant about moving to a new place. When it was time for me to leave Tsukuba, the city I lived in for about […]

It’s another rainy day here in Japan. It’s not really one of those rainy days that gets you down, it’s just one of those chill in the house and relax type of rainy days. For some reason, today, I was looking out the window trying to think of all the Japanese weather words I know, […]

I found this toy at a Japnese second a shop quite some time ago. I won’t say it was for babies, but maybe for toddlers. It was in perfect working condition and I thought I would be a great way to practice hiragana. For some people studying Japanese, they feel insulted or belittled if they […]