If you go to Japan, you'll probably end up receiving a lot of things as gifts, especially if you go as an exchange student. That's what I did as sixteen year old me, fresh to explore the world and take my share of … [Read more...]
One day, even though I had plans to hang out with my friends Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom, Professor Anderson gave me some homework: “Make one million sentences in English.” About that time, they both of my star friends … [Read more...]
Want to read part 1 of this series? Read it here - Japanese, The Borrower Language part 1: Where the Japanese Language Came From. The phenomenon of language borrowing is in no way unique, but it seems to stand out more … [Read more...]
Children. So young! So full of promise! The world is their oyster and they haven't been crushed by life's merciless sky fist... at least not yet. Still though, it's fun to hear a child's hopes and dreams before they turn … [Read more...]
Over the last few years of studying Japanese, I've met more than a handful of J-pop fanatics. Heck, some people I know owe all their mad Japanese skills to studying AKB48 lyrics like their life depends on it. Honestly, … [Read more...]
After one particularly controversial Japanese blog post last week, Japanese Twitter was blazing up (炎上/えんじょう) with tweets of anger and support. The topic? Trains. The controversy? "The reason I don't give up my seat on the … [Read more...]