Comments for I Speak Japanese

Comment on Pronunciation Power! Never sound like a weirdo again. by Chibe

Chibe — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 14:41:53 +0000

Thank you so much. I’m a newbie and yes please slow down a little.

Comment on Learn Hiragana by kevin

kevin — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 01:13:05 +0000

@furanku Thanks for the comment. There are actually a few styles of romaji (the most common being the Revised Hepburn, Nihon, and Kunrei Romanization styles) and the chart above just shows one type. That’s actually why using romaji can be so tricky. Hope this helps to clarify what you’re seeing!

Comment on Tokyo vs. Osaka - Vote for which city you like better! by Sabrina

Sabrina — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 00:12:37 +0000

^.^ Osaka

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by Dawn

Dawn — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:28:07 +0000

Very interesting episode. I have more fun learing about different cultures, both the similarities and differences than just about anything else.
I also had seen this concept in several manga and anime titles. One in particular (Vampire Nights) only showed the girls giving tomo-choco but they didn’t mention White day(there were even a few guys that didn’t receive anything.) I have also seen versions of guys giving a special handmade gift to a girl (xxxHolic did this.) Would that have been White day?

Out of curiosity just how much giri-choco is really handed out, or is it more reserved for schools? (Taro Starbuck, thanks for the office insight.) In the US, elementary age kids swap what would be considered giri-choco, but that goes away once they are 12 or so, and only selected gifts (to both male and female friends) are given.

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by kevin

kevin — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 06:46:20 +0000

@dani Great question! I think the Japanese make it pretty obvious if it’s giri-choco or not. Not only in terms of how the give the chocolates, but what kind of chocolates they give. If the chocolates are hand-made or very special, there’s a good chance there’s feelings involved. Also, if a guy sees a bunch of other guys receive similar chocolates, he could probably tell it was meant to be giri-choco. Hope this helps!

@Taro Starbuck Thanks for the compliments on Speekit and all of the additional details. Always much appreciated!

@Jamie Thanks for mentioning Black Day! I’ve heard about this holiday and think it’s very interesting. And yes, I hear that Korea and Taiwan also celebrate White Day.

@Gordon That’s a great idea! I think its important to introduce little bits of foreign culture into your life to keep thinks exciting. Thanks for sharing!

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by Gordon

Gordon — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 20:55:52 +0000

Hmmm. Arigatou. I actually learned about this holiday (white day) in a Jdorama show and I thought that was sooo cool that I would go ahead and buy a month after V.Day choko except I’ve never really recieved choko on V.Day but Giri-Choko is something I didn’t know about so now I’m going to do that!!! Intresting how different we countries are but how we’re so alike???

Comment on Tokyo vs. Osaka - Vote for which city you like better! by Bethany

Bethany — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 18:10:11 +0000

I have never been to japan, so i cant really vote, but you mentioned escalators.. its the same in london, stick to one side. i dont think theres a rule to which side though. you paint a picture of a country divided at the beginning of the video. im imagine thats not the case tho!
cant wait till the next one XxX

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by Taro Starbuck

Taro Starbuck — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 09:07:28 +0000

Awesome, Jamie! Thanks for sharing that Korean cultural tidbit! おもしろい!
Difficult to imagine taking Valentine`s and White Day a step further as you said they do on Black Day in Korea. Go figure! Surprised the Japanese confectionary companies haven`t caught on to that idea, too! Maybe white rice topped with sweet black beans? おめでとう! Congratulations for not having to celebrate Black Day this year! Good onya, mate! Cupid has been busy recently!？
@Jamie

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by Jamie

Jamie — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 07:55:52 +0000

hehehe! This is awesome! Doesn’t South Korea celebrate this too? They also have a holiday on April 14th called Black day where all the singles who didn’t get or give gifts on Valentine’s or white day.. get together to celebrate or mope in being single over a bowl of white noodles with black sauce, Jajangmyeon.

This year will be the first day I don’t have to eat Jajangmyeon, thank god! Finally! :p

Comment on Happy Valentine’s Day & White Day? by Taro Starbuck

Taro Starbuck — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 07:09:43 +0000

Nice office, Kevin! Looks so cheerful and bright!
Looks like you are settling into your new home and life in Sushiland.
The New Speekit Language Program is great! Fun and educational, tool! Good onya, Aaron and Kevin!

Great video, informative and entertaining, as usual, Kevin! I do not know about other parts of Japan, but Giri-Choco on Valentine`s Day and reciprocal White Day in March have lost some popularity in many offices that once practiced it in the Kansai area. Female staff disliked being obligated to give their office males choco as much as the males disliked being obligated to give white choco to the office women a month later. So, some companies now refrain from that practice. But, Giri-Choco is still practiced in many offices in Japan.
Nice Valentine`s gifts from your Sweetheart and Mother-in-law.
That particular pudding is so rich and tasty! おいしい!
It is my custom to have a Choco & Fruit フォンデュ (fondue) Party at my home for friends, female/males, Valentine`s Day Week, and again using white-choco in March for White Day フォンデュ. たのしい!
Happy White Day! ホワイトデイおたのしみに!
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