Nihongo o benkyou shiteimasu.

I’m studying Japanese.

The above is written only in hiragana because I don’t know much kanji yet and thought it should reflect what I’ve actually learnt. I’m not sure if that means it no longer makes sense. Also, I’ve been to the exact spot in this picture. It was swarmed with cloud when we were there but the view was still amazing. When you’re unfit, it also can be a trek-and-a-half to get up there. I would probably make the climb a lot easier now.

So, there was a glitch with the desktop version of WordPress and I lost majority of this post so I’m going to attempt to write it again. I’ve been having a lot of issues with the desktop version so I’m just going to uninstall it.

So, what I was saying before I was cut off, is that I’ve started learning Japanese again and have been making headway, catching back up to where I was before. I use three/four different sources: Japanese from Zero! 1, Learning Japanese: Hiragana and Katakana, Duolingo, and occasionally asking my brother-in-law to clarify some things for me because he’s actually studied the language in an official setting. I really recommend the Japanese from Zero! Series because it’s easy to understand and as it teaches you words, rules, hiragana and katakana, it slowly integrates those things into your lessons. So, some of my lessons are written half in hiragana, depending on what I’ve learnt. Duolingo is fun but it’s limited and sometimes tests you on things you haven’t learnt, resulting in losing hearts that you need to continue lessons. It is good in terms of slowly teaching you kanji though. I want to just get hiragana and katakana under my belt before I try too hard with kanji.

I started learning Japanese in early 2016 because of my interest in it. When we planned a trip to Japan for the end of the year, I tried to put a lot more effort in trying to learn before we left. I was still studying on the plane. Most of the people we interacted with in Japan spoke enough English to get us buy though, and so I was too nervous to use anything I’d learned, only saving us once or twice when we were away from the cities and needed to ask something. All of our greetings and thanks were in Japanese though, we at least had the confidence to do that, haha. If I went back to Japan now, I would definitely be able to converse a lot more.

I’ve always wanted to learn a new language but like my other hobbies, I do it for a while and then lose the time for it and forget about it. Now that I’m in a better place/position, I want to put the effort in to enjoy my hobbies when I can. I also love Japan, not just because I like anime and manga but because I find the culture amazing and interesting and it was such an experience just being over there for three weeks when I turned twenty those few years ago. I can’t wait to go back.

にほんもにほんごがだいすきです。If that makes sense, then great. I’m learning.