And so, “Why Are You Learning Japanese?”
The first time I’ve been in contact with Japanese was in 1996, when I was a young manga and anime fan. :) I immediately enjoyed the sound of it and started learning the language with the Harraps method. At first, my goal was to be able to read manga in Japanese and understand anime, even a little bit, within ten years. 15 years later, my goal has slightly changed. I don’t read as many manga as before, and I almost do not watch anime anymore. But I’m still thoroughly exposed to the Japanese language, as I am now watching dramas and listening to Jpop on a daily basis. My hobbys may have changed, but the initial fascination for Japan that I felt when I was 15 has endured throughout the years. So here I am now, more fascinated than ever, but working all week and without as much time to devote to studying as before. And I’m frustrated because my Japanese knowledge seems to go in ups and downs, depending on my job and if I have the time to take evening courses. My goal (more like a dream, really) would be to live and work in Japan for a year or so. I don’t think I would be able to be away from my family and friends more than that (and I’ve been away from my country for 4 long years, so I know what I’m talking about). So I need to bring my Japanese skills up to speed, and at least be able to understand conversations in a drama (basic ones) without having to listen extra carefully and translate everything in my time while wincing all the time under the effort. I would also like to be able to speak without stopping for 5 minutes to build a sentence in my head. In short, I’d like to be more fluent, to the point that it flows naturally (or almost naturally, as I tend to think that nothing beats the daily interactions you have to face when you actually live in a country).
Oh, and the trigger for all this is that I’m going to Japan in 1 month to see some friends and I’d really like not to speak in English all the time.