The more I learn Japanese...

[mcalex22]

the more convinced I am that I can never ever be eloquent or good at it! It's damn hard... not just learning kanji or grammar, but learning so many ways of saying something and differentiating the subtle nuances between them! This is why I've started thinking that anime is the absolute worst way to learn Japanese (not only because it's horribly

Comments

[mcalex22]

Thanks and congrats on the new job and everything. Hope you are settling in well :)

[starrylizard]

Lovely picture there.

Languages are hard and I'm reliably informed that asian languages are REALLY hard. I think just stay proud of yourself. :)

Hope you're completely better soon.

[mcalex22]

I think that learning a language is almost like losing weight... there comes a time when you get past the beginners' stage and hit a plateau... because it gets harder. The only advantage I have with Japanese (and possibly Chinese) over all the other languages I have ever learnt is that I started learning to speak and listen before writing.

With most european languages, I could read, write and speak but when it came to listening and comprehension, it went out the door. I think that I do marginally better in Japanese... but my brain gets lazy and at times I don't really pay attention.

I still have a lot of times when I feel stupid because I can't understand a conversation on a show!

[kirei_seimei]

First of all, a gorgeous photo of Otaru! I remember wandering those streets :) If you have the chance before you come back home, go back to Hokkaido in Summer, it has a very different feel!

I say, congrats on your amazing Japanese language progress. It's a simple fact that the more you know, the more you realise you don't know. At this stage, your learning is ongoing and consistent (don't talk to me about getting depressed about it until you've been home a few years!)

And you've been watching anime all along! Even if your enthusiasm for anime is now waning, think of all the fantastic listening practice you've had all these years. I'm probably too far the opposite - I was never really engaged in anime, so my Japanese is all very regular, middle-of-the-road garden variety desu/masu.

I hope you're feeling a lot more genki these days and taking good care of yourself. Rug up and keep watching Criminal Minds and SVU so we can talk shows when we next catch up ;)

Missing ya heaps, lady! Stay warm, and stay cool ^_^ Big hugs!!

[mcalex22]

Thanks for your kind words... though I have to admit that at times, I feel like an idiot when I miss things. Hanging out at the Izayaka helps. Sometimes I enjoy chatting with the locals and when I understand them, it makes me feel like I've accomplished something.

Well, I'm still learning a lot of casual talk - there's a lot of things that don't always make it to the textbooks and conversational Japanese is very different.

Unfortunately I had to stop my classes because I was on holidays a lot and it wasn't worth the money I was paying. Also this winter has been harsh and I just didn't want to walk in the snow and dark to the station after school and back at night.

Ah yes, I want to go back to Hokkaido but I think that I'd rather visit Hokodate rather than Sapporo... I just want to see another part of it. However, I also want to visit Kyushu and Hiroshima...!

Yeah, it is still snowing here... it is surprisingly very cold but I'm using less heat.