From This Day Forward...

I have decided that, every day, I will post a quick blog recapping 10 new things I have learned. A maximum of two per day will go into Japanese language (because I learn Japanese 6 days a week...) and I think it'll get boring if I just post a recap of my language learning every day.

It is also considered cheating to look up things specifically for this every day, so I'll apologize and say that when I'm bored, I Google really random shit.

So here is mine for today:

1.) One of my teachers is from Fukui, Japan and Fukui is not only famous for its snow crabs  but also for the cliffs. So famous, in fact, that people from Japan go there to jump off and kill themselves.

2.) Tungsten is the world's strongest metal and the second strongest material known. However, even slight impurities can make it brittle. It has a melting point of 3,422 °C (6,192 °F), which also makes it the metal with the highest melting point.

3.) A plasma torch can be used to cut metal. Yaaaay plasma!

4.) Jack Frost is a sprite that has Norse origins. In old Norse, he was called Jökul Frosti (pronunced Yoh-kull Fros-tee). Jökul is the icelandic word for glacier or snow mountain.

5.) I learned that if I shower before my toilet bowl has finished filling, the water will keep running until I flush it again.

6.) Irksomely, Rise of the Guardians has no set release date into Japanese theaters. T-T

7.) In the comic TeaHouse, Axis just took his clothes off in the lobby. Wtf?

8.) My throat has been sore for several days...which probably means that I am sick. Or getting sick. D:

9.) I learned that I can still save my teeth if I find and take vitamin D and calcium supplements every day. My teeth have gotten miserable (I've counted 6 cavities) since I've gotten to Japan, but I'm certain it's due to vitamin deficiencies.

10.) If I wrap my onigiri in the seaweed, but leave it for a few minutes...the seaweed becomes soft, chewy and gross.

Cheesy Thanksgiving Post

Thanksgiving

This post will be kind of cheesy, but I wanted to give thanks in written form to all the things I am grateful for. I’m not particularly religious, but who says you have to believe in God to want to express your gratitude about life?

First and foremost, I’m grateful for having the chance to come to Japan for a year to study abroad. I’m only 2.75 months into my 11 month stay, but I’ve already learned a lot. I can speak Japanese better than I’ve ever been able to (although it’s still terrible). I have had to find an apartment, pay bills and rent. Essentially, I’ve had to make it on my own except for one large factor.

I want to thank my dad and my boyfriend of five years. Without them, this wouldn’t have been possible. My financial situation took a turn for the worst, but my dad was miraculously able to come up with the money to save me from being homeless. I feel terrible that I wasn’t able to live up to my promises.

To my loving boyfriend, thanks for being my support. I’ve never been more grateful to have you for a friend and a lover. Not only have you decided to help me financially, but you still want us to be together, even though I’m 5000 miles away. For that, I think I’m the luckiest person ever.

My younger brother seems to be avoiding me (figuratively) and I haven’t really spoken to him since I left, but I also think it’s awesome that I have such a great younger brother.

I’ve spoken to my mother even less. I’m not sure why, but I have a feeling it’s due to financial constraints. I’m so glad that she helped my boyfriend put together a care-package for me.

I’m glad to have a great aunt and uncle, and great friends, who have helped put together care-packages for me. If I say I miss something, it shows up a few weeks later (within reason, of course). For that, I’m grateful to everyone!

How Language Works (or my thoughts on such)

When you talk in your native language, are you actually actively thinking about what you want to say? Or do you just say it as it surfaces? Usually, when you're listening to another person in your native language, you just "know" what they're saying, right?

My question:

Does the human mind actually think about the grammar we use as we use it? As my Japanese has improved, I've started to notice a trend in my mistakes and those of my peers - which leads me to think that we don't actually use grammar as we're taught. I think that, in general, we have each separate meaning memorized.

For example, native speakers usually don't make mistakes with past or present tense when speaking - because it's obvious that it's either past or present. I don't confuse "saying" with "said" or "running" with "ran".  But when I, and my classmates, use Japanese, such mistakes are very common. For example, I might try to say 「猫にえさをあげました」 ( (I) gave food to a cat) but instead, I might say 「猫にえさをあげます」 ( (I) will give food to a cat). I think, in general, these mistakes come from learning present tense by default. We can recall the word fairly quickly, but not necessarily the tense we're looking for. With practice, such mistakes are much less frequent, but I find that they remain common in the newest words. This is particularly common among those who have been studying for the shortest amount of time.

I would like to further this by saying that mistakes in けいご・こたいご are also quite common. Japanese has several different modes of speech. I know a good bit of them and usually I am fairly good when writing, but when speaking, I default to the mode of speech that comes to mind first - casual speech. Think of it like slang and formal speech like writing an academic dissertation.

I'll have to think on this.

Month 2

Today marks my second month in Japan and I really feel it. But time has flown - I hardly remember my first month here and I've drastically cut my spending. Eating ramen every day and buying meat once a week in additional to buying my lunch at the 100 yen Lawson. My appetite has oddly diminished, but some days I fall into food like I'm starving - those days, I eat so much my wallet cries. It's probably due to my poor diet, but it can't be helped. Considering that I am trying to live on less than $22K (including rent) in one of the world's most expensive cities...I think I'm doing okay.

I'm glad for my time with Yadoya - I met a lot of genuinely awesome people. I've already had to say goodbye to most of them, but that's okay! In fact, I'm going out later to surprise two of them with a goodbye cake. They're both sweethearts and one said she might come visit me in America next year!!

I've also learned how to support myself, to some extent. I had to find an apartment on my own and I have to figure out my bills on my own (they're in Japanese). I have been living on my own for a month for the first time in my life.

I'm in the best shape I've been in for a long time. Long walks don't bother my feet or my legs, although the 4 flights of stairs to my Wednesday class will still get me a bit out of breath. Soon, I'll start weekly Fuji training by walking up and down stairs for at least an hour.

My Japanese has improved by leaps and bounds. I need to study kanji more, but most of my teachers encourage "sounding kanji out" based on the readings we know. I know a lot of kanji by sight, but not their readings.... My listening has gotten really good - I can recognize a lot of grammar, even if I don't know the meaning. I've picked up a lot of grammar and colloquialisms just by listening to what people say around me. I've gotten much better at asking for words by explaining it using words I already know. It doesn't work well with complex concepts yet (spent 10 minutes trying to explain calculus before I gave up), but considering I've only had to do this for 2 months, I think I've gotten quite good.

But there are times where I miss my family so much it hurts. I've missed two weddings now and soon to be a third. My boyfriend is having a really hard time with school - to the point where he's drastically cutting back his work hours to gain more sleep and study time. My dad is digging himself into debt for my sake (and a bit of his own). I've been desperately searching for another job, but I have yet to find one. I want to explore Japan desperately, but I'm confined by my budget.

There have been times where I regret getting an apartment, but all-in-all, it was the right choice. I'm very happy with it - aside from the small issue of no cover outside of the door, which sucks when it rains.

All-in-all...I've learned a lot in 2 months.

Getting Around Japan

A lot of people that come to Japan buy the JR Rail pass, which is very expensive and is only available for purchase outside of Japan. However, I've noticed that it seems to be much cheaper to fly. There are many affordable airlines in Japan and many offer round-trip flights for around 10,000 yen (roughly $130). There is something to be said for riding a Japanese bullet train, but when you're on a budget, you're on a budget. Bullet trains can cost more than that just one way. Here are a couple airlines I have considered:

Air Asia
http://www.airasia.com/ot/en/home.page

Air Asia is a Chinese company, but so far seems to offer the lowest prices. They use Haneda (HND) and Narita (NRT) for the Tokyo area, but seem to use HND as the international airport instead of NRT. From Tokyo, you can go to Sapporo, Fukuoka, and Okinawa. You can also go to the South Korea cities of Seoul and Busan for VERY cheap (around 8600 yen or so). In exchange for cheap, watch out. They do try to nickle and dime you - including a "online fee" of 300 yen, a seating fee of 300 yen, etc. Some can't be avoided, but most can.

Jetstar
 http://book.jetstar.com/Search.aspx

Jetstar is an Australian based company that offers low-cost flights throughout the Asian Pacific. You can also use them if you want to go to other countries from Tokyo, such as Australia, South Korea, China, and Taiwan. Jetstar is only through NRT, Tokyo's larger airport, but you can go to Sapporo, Fukuoka, Osaka and Okinawa.

Starflyer
http://www.starflyer.jp/en/

To reserve with Starflyer, you need some knowledge of Japanese OR use the firefox/chrome add-on called Rikaichan - it's free and will help you figure it out. Also note that Starflyer only goes from Tokyo (HND) to Fukuoka, Tokyo (HND) to Kitakyuushuu and Tokyo (HND) to Kansai.


In February, I will be going to the Sapporo Snow Festival - and taking a flight on Air Asia. I will then post a review, but the total is around 12000 yen - $150 USD. They try to nickle and dime you, but who the heck needs 2 meals on a 90 minute flight? Just be careful when purchasing that you don't click something you don't want to.