Learning Japanese

So, a word or two about my language learning here in Japan (Ha ha! No pun intended!):

When I arrived in Japan, I knew maybe 10 words. Eek! Mom, this is the part where you say, “I told you so!” For what it’s worth, you were totally correct. Now I really wish I knew more. I thought that there would be more people here that would know more English. After all, many people start studying in Elementary school and there is English everywhere you look-road signs, grocery stores, movies and music. However, I think I know one person who speaks perfectly understandable English, and about 4 more people who speak really good English, and a lot of people who speak some English, but communicate primarily with body language and the universal grunting.

With all that said, I know very little Japanese. I very often feel foolish living here-how could I move to Japan for a year and not know Japanese?! What was I thinking?! To rely on other people for everything-getting a library card, paying bills, ordering at a restaurant-gets old…quickly.

So, I’ve been learning Japanese! I’ve made a vow to learn at least one Japanese word per day. This may not sound like a lot, but I figure that if I know 365 words by the time I leave, I’ll be in okay shape. Also, I am officially signed up for a weekly Japanese class at and International Center in Kumamoto City. I will be learning conversational Japanese and the written characters, Katakana. There are several different varieties of Japanese characters, Katakana, Hiragana, and Kanji. Kanji is by far the most difficult and originates in China. It’s also the most commonly used in Japan so I should learn that too…but it’s really difficult looking. ;)

Well, I’m going to listen to some Japanese TV now and not understand a word of what’s being said. 