Work Hard, Play Harder

Go asiatus or Greetings,

Have you been studying for hours? Need a mental break, but still in the Japanese frame of mind? Then check out these entertaining Entertainment sites:

Tokyo Hive

Tokyo Hive provides information on your favorite Japanese Celebrities, Musicians, Actors and Personalities. Find out today's Scandles and more at http://www.tokyohive.com/.

Crunchy Roll & Anime Crazy

Hey anime fans, need to catch up on your favorite show such as Bleach, One Piece or Naruto Shippuuden or simply discover new and classic ones such as Kimi ni Todoke, Death Note, Darker than Black, or Dragon Ball Z? Check out these two great sites http://www.animecrazy.net/ and http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime.

iHoneydew



A Music Buff? No problem, iHoneydew is a great place to find new Artist, album releases and the latest Celebrity news!  Visit http://ihoneydew.com/ for more information.




Perfume- Techno Pop Group

 

Drama Crazy & Crunchy Roll

For all you Evil-Mother-In-Law, soap oprea loving freaks Drama fans, sites preivously mentioned have drama alternatives, featuring the latest show and many classics. Check them out at http://www.dramacrazy.net/ or http://www.dramacrazy.net/.

Stay tune for future Music and Drama reviews!





A Love of Chopsticks

It all started with the love of Chopsticks. This fascination of Asian cultures and traditions did not start with my namesake, but started with going to the local Chinese restaurant with my mom on Saturday afternoons after dance class. I had no idea how an encounter with Chopsticks would lead me to continue to be amazed at nearly every facet of any Asian culture.

My next obsession came from watching Bollywood movies on the local community channels, where I fell in love with their dancing, singing and clothing styles. For a while there I was everything India (and would sometimes obnoxiously brag about how cool my namesake was). It was also around the time that I developed an interest in  international events. My life suddenly became the United Nations of information. This new view of the world led me to explore not only the cuisine, fashion and film scene of India,  but it helped me discover a new love of music and fandom.

My following obsession centered on the world of K-Pop (abbreviation for Korean Pop Music). In Recent years I have fallen in love with this music genre. All in all, its Western stylized music that makes it easy to transition from music heard in America to music spoken in another language but with the same base root or storyline: Love & Heartbreak.

Artist 2ne1"Can't Nobody"

Throughout all of this, it is safe to say I have a major crush on Asia, in particular Japan. Although I have had interests in other countries such as Korea and India, none of them have ever promted me to learn their language. Based on this alone the language and culture of Japan is sure to keep me occupied for years to come.

 As I close, I encouge all of you to go out there and explore the different possibilities another culture may hold for you!

Study Materials

Being an independent studier is hard enough on its own. Being an independent studier with limited resource material is harder. In this post you will find helpful study methods and materials that can better prep and guide you in your language studies. 


It's important to know that whether you are an traditional or independent student these study aids can better improve your basic vocabulary and written composition. 


Google Translator:


There is a million reasons to love Google, one of them includes its Translator site. Enter any word in the English portion of the translator and it appears as it would in Japanese (or any other language you are studying). The Romanized equivalent  of the word is also present for those who have trouble deciphering the symbols. There is also an  "Listen" button for those who have trouble pronouncing the words and need the word read aloud to them.  


http://translate.google.com/#


Merriam-Webster's Japanese-English Dictionary:

Purchasing this low cost dictionary will further add to your language needs. Although Google Translator is a very affective tool, having a dictionary will come in handy.  Dictionaries provide the most correct use of words, spelling, grammar and phrases used in any given language. The dictionary can even provide information not yet available online. 


Japanese For Dummies


Japanese For Dummies, is  the ultimate traveler's and students survival guide. This Dummies' addition comes in a variety of formats from a full book, CD audio or an digital audio download. It also comes in a range of prices starting from $5- to $25.


The Itunes store has the digital version for around $6 .


ManythingsJapanese.org:


My final suggestion for study materials comes from student/guru Charles Kelly's site http://www.manythings.org/japanese/. The site gives helpful insight to those studying for the JLPT. With digital flash cards, videos practice quizzes and tests plus much more, this student friendly site can help you navigate and prep for one or all of the JLPT certification. 


*My other suggestion, which is not fully mentioned above is making personalized note cards. Taking simple note cards and  putting words, phrases, facts or anything else of importance onto them will help with memory and break down of the complex language. 


To conclude this posting,  learning another language whether as an traditional or independent student should cost you little to nothing in your quest for basic to complete fluency in your language of choice. 


As always さようなら, sayonara or bye!

Interested in Donations for the Quake and Tsunami victims? Read the post below to find out how.

The Nippon Student

こんにちは, Kon'nichiwa or Hello,

This is The Nippon Student blog or The Japan/Japanese Student blog. I came up with blog theme as a way to connect with other students that study the language and culture of Japan. This blog will follow my journey as I independently study the Japanese language and consider taking the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Test) years down the line.

Now on to more serious news. Hopefully you've heard by now about our beloved Nippon. I encourage all of you to donate in some way either through monetary means, volunteer work or any other way possible to help rebuild this country. Remember you do not have to be Japanese to care and love Japan!

Here are some Earthquake & Tsunami relief funds to contribute to:

American Red Cross
Global Giving
Save the Children
Shelter Box
International Medical Corps


all can be accessed through this link:

https://www.networkforgood.org/donation/MakeDonation.aspx?ORGID2=060726487&source=YAHOO&cmpgn=NEWS

Take Care and Care!