Monday, January 27, 2014

The Word Order

You see the world which your language cut out and shaped up.

I like this idea. We see the world in different ways.
We can think because we have words.


I hate studying grammar when I was a student. It was boring, I thought. We (Japanese people) cannot speak English well because Japanese language education makes much account of grammar, I thought. But now I think, studying grammar is also interesting!

I always wonder why people in different areas speak in different languages.
A dog in Japan barks just like a dog in Brazil does, doesn't it?
Or, dogs, cats, and birds all over the world also have their own languages?

Anyway, we have different languages and perhaps think in different ways.
When I learn grammar, I can see how it's different from (or similar to) my mother tongue.


The clearest point is, its word order. Like SVO, SOV.
The word order in Japanese is like this;
いつ(when)/どこで(where)/だれが(who)/なにを(what)/どうした。
You know, we say a conclusion at the end of the sentence.

For example, 昨日(きのう)/公園(こうえん)で/父が/寝ているのを/見た。
How do you say it in English?
I saw my father sleeping at the park yesterday. Right?


As you see, Japanese starts from explaining about the environment.
On the other hand, English focuses on the action.

Perhaps people who speak Japanese see this situation as a two-dimensional display?

The subject "I" is just a part of the scenery.
I think that's why Japanese usually omit the subject "I".
I am, also one of the spectators of all.


English and other many popular languages sounds three-dimensional for me.
There must be a main actor in a sentence.
I watch how he moves and how he influences others.


It's very interesting for me. :)
What do you think of it?



*Japanese Word of the Day*
お父(とう)さん、こんなところでなにしてんの?!
/otousan, konnna-tokoro de nani shiteru no/
Dad, what are you doing HERE?!

*こんなところで emphasises on the place you're talking about.
Literally means "at such a place".

*なにしてんの is a frank spoken form of なにしてるの


How is the word order in your language like?
By the way, I do love WORLD ORDER, the most innovative dance & music troupe in Japan!!
Check it out if you haven't seen their video yet!!



Thursday, January 23, 2014

A Creepy Sandman

Hey!

Recently I'm too lazy to do anything. Um... Yep, not recently, AS USUAL.
This morning, after seeing my husband off to work, I turned off TV and listened to Podcast. I subscribe many Podcasts to learn foreign languages.
→My recommended list of Podcasts


Every time I get ready to study, I fall asleep. It's not just me, right?
And I did 二度寝(にどね) as usual. I saw a dream.




A huge white snake was attacking students in a school. I was one of the students.
The snake was starving. It swallowed people one after another, but wasn't satisfied.
I ran down the stairs to escape from it. But there was a crowd of zonbies!!

I gave up running down the stairs and turned back.
I forgot what I did, but I had a bowl of soup. I spooned up a small dumpling and came up with an idea to give the snake the dumpling. I felt very happy and smiled.

Then I woke up.



*Japanese Word of the Day*
授業(じゅぎょう)中(ちゅう)、いつも睡魔(すいま)におそわれる。
/jugyou-chuu itsumo shuima ni osowareru/
I always get drowsy while in class.


*授業/jugyou/ class, lesson

*~中/chuu/ while, during
食事(しょくじ)中 while one's eating
会話(かいわ)中 during a conversation

*いつも/itsumo/ every time, always, every day, usually

*睡魔/suima/
Let's have a look at its Kanji. The letter "睡/sui/" meas "to sleep", and "魔/ma/" means "devil" "monster" and "mysterious power".

Imagine a small devil comes to make you sleep. XD
That's why we use the verb "おそう/osou/" with this word.
It means "to attack" or "to invade".

おそわれる is the passive form of おそう.
*~におそわれる/...ni osowareru/ to be attacked by...



Are you often attacked by 睡魔? Haha

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Wanna Speak Japanese Fluently?

Do you want to know more about Japanese culture and language?

I found an awesome Youtube Channel, let me share it with you!:)


http://www.youtube.com/user/japanagos

I've watched her other channel, where she teaches English for Japanese people.
Yes, she is a completely bilingual. You'll like her, she's really cool.


I wish I could speak English fluently like her!
So far I speak as fluent as kids around 3 or 4 years old. lol
Or, they would be better. :/
You may say I can write English, but speaking is totally different.



Recently the air pollution in Taiwan seems to get worse. :'(
I often get something stuck in my throat when I'm outside...
You should wear a mask if you have allergy or you're asthmatic.



*Japanese Word of the Day*
英語(えいご)ペラペラ(ぺらぺら)になりたい!
/eigo pera-pera ni naritai/
I want to become fluent in English!

ペラペラ/perapera/ means to speak fluently. If you can speak Japanese fluently,
you can say 私(わたし)は日本語(にほんご)がペラペラです


英語:English
日本語(にほんご):Japanese
スペイン語(すぺいんご):Spanish
ドイツ語(どいつご):German
フランス語(ふらんすご):French
中国語(ちゅうごくご):Chinese

*~になりたい:want to be...



I have to practice speaking if I want to become fluent in a foreign language.
But... I know, I am too lazy. And too shy to talk to people(T_T)

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

The Zodiac Signs

Do you know the Zodiac Signs, called 干支(えと)/eto/ in Japanese?


There are twelve zodiac signs based on the ancient Chinese astrology.
Each year has its symbolic animals, and this year is the year of Horse.
It is said that the people who were born in Horse year, are cheerful,
energetic, and open-minded.


Many websites show you the chart of birth year and zodiac sighs,
and those personality traits associated with your sign.
Search it, and tell me what animal you are! ;D



My husband bought crayons for me, so I enjoy drawing these days. ^_^


*Japanese Word of the Day*
なに年(どし)生(う)まれ?
/nani-doshi umare?/
What is your zodiac sign?

※When you talk to the person who is older or senior than you,
or the person who isn't close, then you should add ですか at the
end of the sentence to make it polite!
→なに年生まれですか


うま年だよ。
/uma-doshi dayo/
It's Horse.

※Or, うま年です in a polite way.



That's all for today!! Thank you for reading. :D

Monday, January 13, 2014

Find A Language Exchange Partner

How do you study a foreign language?

As for me, I started Language Exchange with Taiwanese friends to learn Chinese last year. At first, I could say only "xie xie (thank you)" and "ni hao (hello)" in Chinese, but thanks to my good friends, now I can somehow communicate with Taiwanese people in Chinese. I really appreciate their help. :)


So, today I wanna show you one of the good SNS websites to find a language exchange partner. This is a very useful website if you're planning to travel to Japan or want to find a friends all over the world, too.


japan-guide.com
There are travel guide to Japan, living information, trip reports, and a forum to ask questions and find friends.




<Find a friend or language exchange partner>


Click "Forum" on the top banner of this website.


Choose "Friend" if you want to find a friend. If you want to find a language exchange partner, choose "Language Exchange". These are free to use.

Let's have fun learning foreign languages! ;)






By the way, do you know what kind of holiday is it today in Japan?
It's 成人式(せいじんしき)/sei-jin-shiki/, the day of coming of age ceremony.

Well, I'm too lazy to explain about it in English. :P
Let's have a look at Wikipedia!!


Coming of Age Day (成人の日 Seijin no Hi?) is a Japanese holiday held annually on the second Monday of January. It is held in order to congratulate and encourage all those who have reached the age of majority (20 years old (二十歳 hatachi?)) over the past year, and to help them realize that they have become adults. Festivities include coming of age ceremonies (成人式 seijin-shiki?) held at local and prefectural offices, as well as after-parties amongst family and friends.
-from Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coming_of_Age_Day


Girls wear Japanese traditional cloths, called 振袖(ふりそで)/furisode/ to attend this ceremony.



They are on the way home from the ceremony! So gorgeous!




*Japanese Word of the Day*
出口(でぐち)はこちら側(がわ)です。
/deguchi wa kochira-gawa desu/
The exit is here.

こちら側からお帰(かえ)りください。
/kochira-gawa kara okaeri kudasai/
Please return from this side.


Wednesday, January 8, 2014

New Year's Holiday

Heeeyyyyy!! How did you spend your holiday?

In Japan, the most important holiday is the New Year's holiday.
So I went back to Japan and had a great time.

Sorry that I couldn't update my blog for a while. Now, I'm gonna keep on writing and practicing English this year, too. Have you decided your New Year's resolutions?


I feel a little regret that I couldn't visit my parents, but I believe they're all fine and had a wonderful New Year's holiday. :) I went back to my in-laws' house with my husband.
It had been about 3 years since the last time I visited them.


My husband and I went to Kobe Kachoen (the official website).
There were many kinds of flowers and birds. I love birds, especially toucans!!
I was really excited that a toucan perched on my arm!! XD


The New Year's day, my husband and I left in-law's house and headed for the hells in Beppu. (I wrote about the hell tour in the previous entry. Please check it out if you haven't read yet!) It was a wonderful trip. I had a lot of fun there!!

Beppu city is famous for its hot springs, but there're many interesting places to visit besides the hot springs. This time, we also went to an aquarium and a monkey park. :3


Do you recognize the animal in the lower right picture? I do love her <3
I enjoyed the dolphins show and the elephant seals performance.



The monkey park was a little scary for me. You can see tens of monkeys walking or sitting very close to you. At that time, park rangers held an election to decide who is the most handsome monkey in the park. lol



After our travel, we went back to Nagasaki where we had lived for 2 years after we got married. We're going to settle down in Nagasaki when his work in Taiwan will finish.


I found a nice cafe shop near Nagasaki station. The shop name is 旅人茶屋/tabibito-chaya/. 旅人(たびびと) means travelers and 茶屋(ちゃや) means a tea house.


You can choose your favorite cup to drink coffee. These cups are really beautiful. As you see, many travelers from all over the world wrote some words in their own languages. It's very interesting. Can you read them?




Did you find your language?
If not, why don't you visit this shop and write it for them? ;D (Here's the map)


This is the cup I chose! Cool!


Now, I returned to Taiwan from Japan. It's not so cold, compared with Japan.
Please tell me how your holiday was. Leave a comment! :D

I'm sure 2014 will be the great year for me, and for you all.
Why? You know I am an optimist! lol



*Japanese Word of the Day*
今年(ことし)も素敵(すてき)な一年(いちねん)になりますように!
/kotoshi mo suteki na ichi-nen ni narimasu youni/
I wish this year will also be the wonderful year!

*今年/kotoshi/ this year
*素敵/suteki/ adorable, nice, cool, lovely
*一年/ichi-nen/ a year
*~になりますように/ni narimasu youni/ I hope(wish) it will be...