Life in Japan // Q&A

Life in Japan // Q&A

Date:September 13, 2018
Author:
Category:Japanese Culture
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Introduction – Life in Japan

During my exchange year to Japan I made a bunch of amazing memories and just had an awesome time in general. Living in Japan is really cool so I asked all of y’all to ask me questions about Life in Japan, Japanese culture and studying Japanese. You did not disappoint.

Here, I try to answer your questions in a little Japan Q&A. Watch the video or read my answers for more information.

The Video

The Questions

What’s your favourite Memory

There are way to many memories since one experiences new things every single day and there are so many different exciting moments throughout your entire exchange. And that is how it should be, going on exchange isn’t like going on holiday for a week, but it’s a much longer, much more personal experience where you make new memories all the time.

Still, here are some of my favourites:

Spring break in Kyoto: during my spring holidays, my host family took me on a three day trip to Kyoto where I got to saw a bunch of really cool, traditional Japanese sights and even made my own Wagashi. I took a bunch of pictures during the trip and you can see a lot of them over on Instagram.

Debate Tournaments with School Club: I spent a lot of time with my High School Club, so it is only right to have made many amazing memories during that time. I joined the English Debate Club for exactly half of my stay, and then switched to a more traditional Japanese culture club, the Calligraphy Club.

During my time debating, our team managed to win the Japanese National Championship in Osaka and got to go to the Parliamentary Debate World Congress. I made so many amazing friends from all over the world during the international championship that I am still in contact with today. If y’all are reading this, I miss you!

We even got interviewed on NHK, which was one of the strangest experiences I have ever had.

How did you learn all the signnnnnnns / How did you learn Japanese?

That is a very good question. I haven’t yet. There are roughly 2136 jōyō kanji, which is the official list of everyday kanji created by the Japanese Ministry of Education. At the time of taking the N3 JLPT, I knew around 900, and I haven’t really been studying them much ever since, but I am getting to it. I write about studying Japanese here.

Here’s the video where I cover all of the books, websites and podcasts I used to study Japanese. Check it out!

Could you do a video speaking only Japanese?

I probably could, I don’t know. Would you want to watch me speak Japanese badly for 5 minutes straight?

How is the food in Japan? What’s your favourite meal?

The food is amazing. I think the Japanese cuisine is one of the main reasons why I enjoy life in Japan so much – there are just so many different dishes and they are all so unique and tasty.

My favourite dish is probably Soba noodles, which are made out of buckwheat. Next to Ramen and Udon, Soba is the third type of noodle that is typical for Japan and has a medium thickness. If you want me to make a video about the types of noodles, let me know.

During my exchange, I actually got to learn how to make Soba noodles myself, and it is really easy and fun.

Are the Japanese really more polite?

Everybody I met in Japan was just so kind and friendly, so from personal experience, totally. In general, I couldn’t give you an answer.

When did you become interested in Japanese culture and language?

I used to really want to learn to write Chinese when I was super little, and more recently I fell in love with Japanese art history.

Favourite Words?

Here is some:

5 Japanese Words that the Rest of the World needs

Wrap-Up

And there you have it, I hope you enjoyed this little q&a session. I answer a few more in the video itself, but this post was just getting too long. Make sure to subscribe to my Youtube channel and follow me over on Instagram or Twitter (@yonaschuh on each) to get notified when I post something new.

I hope you enjoyed this,
Until next time,

send a postcard,
Yona

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