Thanks ninjamerah. First post updated.

LESSON 21: Asobi ni kite kudasai = Please come and visit

Introduction
In this lesson you will learn:
- about visiting a Japanese home
- about Japanese houses
- how to invite a Japanese person to your home
- how to introduce yourself in a business or formal situation
- about the exchange of business cards
- how to make a phone call to a Japanese home and office

This lesson will look at a few formal Japanese phrases you may come across in the Japanese home and in working life. It is particularly useful if you are planning to go to Japan or if you have Japanese friends in your own country.

Review
- greeting (lesson 3)
- days of the week (Lesson 11, Explanation 9)
- inviting someone (Lesson 12, Explanation 6)
- asking if someone is well (Lesson 15, Explanation 1)
- describing words (Lesson 15)
- useful expressions (Lesson 18)

Satō-sensei no ie de At Sato-sensei's house

Vocabulary list
gomen kudasai = may i come in? (Lit. excuse me - said when entering a home)
genkan = the entrance porch
ima = living room
yoku irasshaimashita = welcome (to my home)
o-genki desu ka = are you well? (used if someone has been ill or if you havent seen them for some time)
o-kagesama de = i'm fine, thank you (in reply to o-genki desu ka)
o-hairi kudasai = please come in
hairimasu = enter
shitsurei shimasu = pardon me for interrupting (said when entering a home or room)
surippa = slippers
o-kake kudasai = please sit down
tsumaranai mono = it's nothing much (said when handing over a gift) (Lit. a boring thing)
ikaga desu ka = how about ...? would you like? (formal version of dō desu ka)
dochira ga ii desu ka = which would you prefer?
itadakimasu = (said before a meal - like "Bon appetit")
gochisōsama deshita = (said after a meal - Lit. that was a feast)
oishisō desu = it looks delicious
... no okawari = another helping of ...
mō kekkō desu = i'm full, thank you
o-ki o tsukete = take care

Sample conversation 1
An-san wa Satō-sensei no ie e asobi ni ikimashita. Anne has gone to visit Sato-sensei's home.
Anne: (sliding open the front door) Gomen kudasai!
Satō-sensei: Ā, An-san! Yoku irasshaimashita. O-genki desu ka.
Anne: Ē, o-kagesama de.
Satō-sensei: Dōzo, o-hairi kudasai.
Anne: Shitsurei shimasu. (Anne enters the genkan)
Satō-sensei: Surippa o dōzo. (Anne takes off her shoes and steps into the slippers)
Satō-sensei: Kochira e dōzo.

Ima ni hairimasu. They enter the living room.
Satō-sensei: O-kake kudasai.
Anne: Shitsurei shimasu.
Satō-sensei: Hokkaidō wa dō deshita ka.
Anne: Totemo tanoshikatta desu. Kireina tokoro desu ne.
Satō-sensei: Sō desu ne. Samukatta desu ka.
Anne: Ē, chotto samukatta desu. Ano, tsumaranai mono desu ga, dōzo.
Satō-sensei: Ara! Nan deshō?
Anne: Hokkaidō no omiyage desu.
Satō-sensei: Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu. An-san, ocha to kōhī to dochira ga ii desu ka.
Anne: Ocha o onegaishimasu.
Satō-sensei: Kēki wa ikaga desu ka.
Anne: Oishisō desu ne. Itadakimasu.

Later:
Satō-sensei: An-san, itsu Igirisu ni kaerimasu ka.
Anne: Mō sugu desu ne. Raigetsu desu.
Satō-sensei: Nihongo ga jōzu ni narimashita ne.
Anne: Iie, mada mada desu.
Satō-sensei: Jōzu desu yo. Ocha no okawari wa ikaga desu ka.
Anne: Mō kekkō desu.

As Anne is leaving:
Anne: Gochisōsama deshita. Kēki wa oishikatta desu.
Satō-sensei: Mata asobi ni kite kudasai.
Anne: Arigatō gozaimashita.
Satō-sensei: O-ki o tsukete!
Anne: Oyasumi nasai.

Word list
ara! nan deshō? = hey, what's this?
... ni narimashita = you have become ...

Practise 1
Figure out what these Japanese phrases mean.
a. Ocha o onegaishimasu.

b. Shitsurei shimasu.

c. Tsumaranai mono desu ga, dōzo.

d. Gochisōsama deshita.

e. Hokkaidō no omiyage desu.

f. Gomen kudasai.

g. Kēki wa oishikatta desu.

h. O-kagesama de.


Practise 2
Try to match the following phrases in Japanese (a-k) with their English meanings (i-xi).
a. Welcome (to my home).
b. Are you well?
c. Please come in.
d. Come this way.
e. Please sit down.
f. Thank you very much.
g. Would you prefer beer or wine?
h. Would you like some coffee?
i. Would you like some more coffee?
j. Please visit again.
k. Take care.

i. Bīru to wain to dochira ga ii desu ka.
ii. Dōmo arigatō gozaimasu.
iii. Mata asobi ni kite kudasai.
iv. O-ki o tsukete.
v. Yoku irasshaimashita.
vi. Kōhī wa ikaga desu ka.
vii. O-genki desu ka.
viii. Dōzo o-hairi kudasai.
ix. Kochira e, dōzo.
x. O-kake kudasai.
xi. Kōhī no okawari wa ikaga desu ka.



Practise 3
Emi is in England and is planning to visit Anne's mother. Anne's mother has been studying Japanese by herself so that she can welcome Emi in Japanese. Take the part of Anne's mother and figure out her part of the dialogue.

Emi: Gomen kudasai!
Mrs Jenkins: Welcome Emi to your house and invite her in.
Emi: Shitsurei shimasu.
Mrs Jenkins: Guide her to the living room, then ask her to sit down.
Emi: Shitsurei shimasu.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her how London was.
Emi: Omoshirokatta desu.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her where she went.
Emi: 'Madam Tussauds' to Daiei hakubutsukan ni ikimashita. Ano, tsumaranai mono desu ga, dōzo.
Mrs Jenkins: Thank her very much for the gift.
Emi: Nihon no ningyō desu.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her if she'd prefer tea or coffee.
Emi: Kōcha o onegaishimasu.
Mrs Jenkins: Then offer her some sandwiches.
Emi: Hai, itadakimasu.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her if Anne is well.
Emi: Hai, totemo genki desu. Nihongo ga jōzu ni narimashita.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her if she'd like some more tea.
Emi: Iie, mō kekkō desu. Gochisōsama deshita. Sorosoro shitsurei shimasu.
Mrs Jenkins: Ask her to visit again.
Emi: Arigatō gozaimasu. Totemo tanoshikatta desu.
Mrs Jenkins: Tell her to take care and say goodbye.
Emi: Sayōnara.

Word list
daiei hakubutsukan = British museum
ningyō = doll
sorosoro = soon
sorosoro shitsurei shimasu = i shall be leaving (excusing myself) soon



Watashi wa Yamaguchi to mōshimasu I am called Mr Yamaguchi

Vocabulary list
Eikoku = England (also Igirisu)
... to mōshimasu = I am called ...
yoroshiku onegaishimasu = please to meet you (also dōzo yoroshiku)
meishi = business card
watashi no desu = this is/it's mine

Sample conversation 2
Mr Yamaguchi is meeting a British business client at a reception in Tokyo.
Business client: Hajimemashite, Eikoku Ginkō no Maiku Robinson to mōshimasu. Dōzo yoroshiku. (they both bow)
Yamaguchi: Hajimemashite, Nihon no Ginkō no Yamaguchi to mōshimasu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.
Business client: Watashi no meishi o dōzo.
Yamaguchi: Watashi no desu. Dōzo. (they both exchange business cards)

Denwa o suru koto Making phone calls

Vocabulary list
moshi-moshi = hello (when telephoning)
irasshaimasu ka = is he in? (polite version of imasu)
resu desu = he's not in (the house)
kaigi-chū = in a meeting
denwa-chū = on the phone
shutchō-chū = on a business trip
gaishutsu-chū = out (of the office)
dengon = a message
dengon o onegai dekimasu ka = may I leave a message?
watashi ni denwa o onegaishimasu = please phone me
yoroshiku onegaishimasu = i'm indebted to you (used when meeting someone for the first time and when someone is going to do you a favour)
mata denwa o shimasu = i'll phone again
o-taku = home (someone else's)
shitsurei shimasu = sorry for interrupting (said by the caller at the end of a call)

Practise 4
Read the following telephone conversation and indicate whether the statements that follow are correct or not.

Yamaguchi-san wa Robinson-san ni denwa o shimasu. Mr Yamaguchi telephones Mr Robinson.
Yamaguchi: Moshi moshi, Tōkyō Ginkō no Yamaguchi desu ga Robinson-san wa irasshaimasu ka.
Hisho: Sumimasen, ima kaigi-chū desu. Go-dengon ga arimasu ka.
Yamaguchi: Hai, watashi ni denwa o onegaishimasu. Kaisha no denwa-bangō wa zero san no hachi san kyū no go ichi ichi go desu. Shichiji made koko no imasu. Soshite uchi e kaerimasu. Uchi no denwa-bangō wa zero san ichi no hachi san roku no nana kyū ichi nana desu.
Hisho: Hai, wakarimashita.
Yamaguchi: Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

a. Robinson-san wa Yamaguchi-san ni denwa o shimashita. ( T / F )
b. Robinson-san wa denwa-chū deshita. ( T / F )
c. Yamaguchi-san wa dengon o shimashita. ( T / F )
d. Yamaguchi-san no kaisha no denwa- bangō wa 03-836-7917 desu. ( T / F )
e. 7-ji made kaisha ni imasu. ( T / F )
f. Soshite resutoran e ikimasu. ( T / F )

If you have made it this far, congratulations! Omedetō gozaimasu!

If you've followed the lessons from the beginning up till now, you should have a fairly decent grasp of the Japanese language and should now be able to carry out conversations in Japanese in a variety of different situations.

It has been my pleasure bringing you these lessons, and hopefully this thread will benefit many in the days to come. I also want to take this opportunity to thank the many contributors who have helped in one way or another, especially those who have provided so many awesome links as noted in the first post. Arigatō gozaimasu!

Keep on practising! Gambatte and sayōnara!

P/S: Do check in from time to time as I will still continue to upload any materials I can find into the Gmail account, or provide links to new and fresh materials. Those who still want to contribute either by providing links or materials can also do so.

This post has been edited by jhcj: Mar 13 2006, 10:01 PM

That'll be cool! Dozo!

Well, these lessons were meant to give readers a basic grasp of conversing in Japanese in the first place. Because of that, I thought that including kana or kanji would be detrimental instead of beneficial. That's why everything's in romaji.

However, this thread also exists if readers have questions to ask, so if you need any explanations on anything including the kana/kanji, feel free to ask away.

Mada mada desu.

It's hard for me cause I dont get many chances to practise conversing with real-life people and in real-life situations. But I think my Japanese is ok enough for a noob.

Characteristics and usage of hiragana
The hiragana syllabary consists of 48 syllables and is mainly used to write word endings, known as okurigana in Japanese. Hiragana are also widely used in materials for children, textbooks, animation and comic books, to write Japanese words which are not normally written with kanji, such as adverbs and some nouns and adjectives, or for words whose kanji are obscure or obselete.

Hiragana are also sometimes written above or along side kanji to indicate pronunciation, especially if the pronunication is obscure or non-standard. Hiragana used in this way are known as furigana or ruby. In horizontal texts, the furigana appear above the kanji and in vertical texts, the furigana appear on the right of the kanji. In newspapers it is a legal requirement for furigana to be attached to kanji which are not included in the official list of the 1,945 most frequently-used kanji. Newspapers in fact rarely use kanji not included in this list.

Characteristics and usage of katakana
The katakana syllabary consists of 48 syllables and was originally considered "men's writing". Since the 20th century, katakana have been used mainly to write non-Chinese loan words, onomatopoeic words, foreign names, in telegrams and for emphasis (the equivalent of bold, italic or upper case text in English). Before the 20th century all foreign loanwords were written with kanji.

Katakana are also used to write Ainu, a language spoken on the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido.

Source: http://www.omniglot.com/writing/japanese.htm

I think they would use both scripts in school, plus kanji. And yes, katakana is easier because it's more angular and edgy, compared to hiragana which is more curvy.

Maybe you can try asking here: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopic=230477

First let me say my Japanese is not really that great. If you want more help you should probably go here: http://forum.lowyat.net/index.php?showtopic=230477

Nani o shimasu ka sounds alright to me, although if you want to emphasize "now" you should probably add "ima" e.g. ima wa nani o shimasu ka.

Again, you should probably ask the experts in that thread I posted above.

Well, the way I understand it, "to" is a connector and works like the English word "and". On the other hand, "mo" is more like "also" or "too", so there's a slight difference there.

Example:
Watashi mo ikitai = I also want to go

Boifurendo is a romanised or westernised way of saying boyfriend.

I'm not too sure what the Japanese word is for "dear", I'm guessing maybe koishii? Again, you should probably ask in that Japanese speaking thread.

A!!! Genki?

This post has been edited by jhcj: Jul 8 2006, 11:11 AM

Thanks for the link!

dopodplaya, you are free to use this thread for educational purposes if you want. We could all use the extra input.

Actually if you notice, I uploaded a program into your ftp server. But I dont know how to link it here. @_@

It's a flash card program to help memorise kanji.

Yup! That's the one! Thanks!

I'll add the link to the front page. Now everyone here can download. XD

http://linear.mv.com/cgi-bin/j-e/dict

This one is quite alright. I've used this on many occassions.

The info is in the first post.

http://www.jfkl.org.my/dept/language/school_list.php

The reason the download's taking forever is probably because of the internet slowdown these days. Just wait till they fix the underwater cables.

Well, we do have our very own Malaysian anime subbing group born from this community here. Heard of Anime Shrine [ASH]? They subbed FMP sometime back.

It's a phone message. Basically it says that no one is around, at the beep please leave your name and number.

Added the links to the first post.

I miss the times when I had enough free time to do all this.