actually rei is used pretty normally.

4 can also be pronounced shi
7 can also be pronounced sichi

no chinese background shouldnt deter u from studying japanese. i don't have one and got my 2nd level proficiency in 1.5 years. i've heard of other foreigners who got 1st level in the same amount of time. がんばって！!あきらめないでください

This post has been edited by clemong_888: Aug 15 2006, 05:29 PM

u're right on this.

This post has been edited by clemong_888: Aug 17 2006, 06:49 PM

yeaps 3kyuu 2004, 2kyuu 2005 .. maybe this year 1kyuu but no confidence of passing:P

numeric is so much easier what.. i can't imagine myself writing kanji when doing math or calculations.

u got to borrow books and tapes.. but thts about it..

actually, why do u want to move to japan? if possible i would rather raise my children away from here. bullying is just too bad, i dont want my child to jump off my apartment building! japan is not rosy at all.

noodle dechipiring.. not easy! but then i never look at instructions .

cos i'm staying/studying here at the moment. tends to open your eyes

it's not a bad impression,it's reality here.often foreigners have the impression that japan is a mystical place with hot chicks,anime and what not but the living standard has been getting worse. poor getting poorer, rich getting richer( but it's a problem in any country as well). toyota-shi and most places in aichi-ken are exceptions.

bullying goes beyond parents, the education system is to be blamed and japanese perception of taking responsibility=suicide. a kid commits suicide because of bullying. the headmaster commits suicide cos he said he's responsible for it. what sorta example is that.

being a foreigner here is another problem. i don't like the term gaijin, almost the same as calling japanese 'japs'. and us aliens ( as started in our alien cards) are hardly accepted into society.

of course it's not all bad here. i do enjoy life here and i do have some japanese friends, albeit not close(friendship takes time , so i cant blame them) traveling is a blast, cost aside. and some japanese are just so friendly(friendly and accepting into society are 2 diff things)

i notice u people wanted topics about japan, there are abundant, the pacifist constitution and mr.abe , declining birth rate, the future of japan? the health minister calling women 'baby making machines' and etc

most unis offer courses in english for masters up. basic japanese is required for communication and stuff like that. u should start hiragana and katakana right away!

yea, would agree that this be thread for helping people study while the other one become the real battlefield

shinnen akemashite omedetou would do.

katakana and hiragana is actually pretty similar, u can actually see the connections

if u wanna do engineering, the easiest way is to apply for jpa's look east prog, if u're chinese, through ppktj in utm kl,malay either ppktj or aaj in um.

studying here is well different and of course the same, u cant run away from going class,study,etc..

hrm.. i got no idea on this one, it's not sth japanese normally say i guess. if u read the nen ka jou (new yr cards) they sent out, they dont usually say it either. so cant help u there , do share with us if u find out

ahaha .. i forgot myself but to summarize it, apply for jpa is the easiest way as not many chinese wanna go there. u just finish spm right?

go japan on jpa scholarship, alot of ppl reject, more than u can imagine so apply for it once your result comes out.

jpa would be easier than monkasho. other alternatives would be to look for your own sponsor but those are mostly for ppl wanting to do masters or phd.

i just looked up the dic, mohaya = anymore but its the 1st time i've seen it. mono=things/happenings so phenomena is pretty alright.

urm, i think va,vi,vu,ve,vo does exsit.. even ti as well but only for katakana.

u're right about japanese changing the v to b but there are a few rare cases i've learned quite a bit on this as well. thanks for sharing, post more in the future!

mo actuallys means also , to is and while ya is and but usually added with nado at the end to mean etc..

i guess all would be somehow acceptable. but mo just sounds cool

i'm talking rubbish

@oe_kintaro

i would have to agree with everything u just posted except the 'okasan' n
'haha' part. i used to refer my mom as 'haha' or my brother as 'ani' when i got here but it just feels weird. i've not heard a japanese say it! yes, grammar wise, it might be the right thing but in today's society, no one uses it anymore...

exactly..i was taught saying 'haha' or 'ani' when refering to my own parents but the young don't use it. and i deal with the young most of the time.

u wanna understand the young society? 2 words.. uzai and yabai.. fits almost any situation.. that hows bad japanese has become and in some ways, mine as well...

i think its shiyou but i aint tht good with names either...