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6. How to get a seat at a restaurant in Japanese

In this week’s video, we will learn some useful Japanese phrases for getting a seat at a Japanese restaurant.

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Transcript

In this video, Tomoe teaches the most common Japanese phrases you will use when getting a seat at a restaurant in Japan.

0:11

こんにちは、レストランに入った時の席に着くまでのやり方を勉強します。
konnichi wa resutoran ni haitta toki no seki tsuku made no yarikata wo benkyou shimasu
Hello, we’re going to learn (some phrases) about how to get a seat at a restaurant (in Japanese).

0:19

まずお店に入ったら店員さんが「いらっしゃいませ、何名様ですか』と聞くから…
mazu omise ni haittara teninsan ga irasshaimase, nanmei sama desu ka to kiku kara
First of all, when you get to a restaurant, the staff will say “irasshaimase, nanmei sama desu ka” (welcome, how many people are in your party?)

0:28

一人だったら「一名」、
hitori dattara ichimei
If it’s one person (say) “ichi mei (desu)”

0:32

二人だったら「二名です」、
futari dattara ni mei desu
If it’s 2 people “ni mei desu”

0:35

三人だったら「三名です」、
sannin dattara sanmei desu
If it’s three people “san mei desu”

0:38

四人だったら「四名です」、
yonnin dattara yonmei desu
If it’s 4 people “yon mei desu”

0:42

五人だったら「五名です」、
gonin dattara gomei desu
If it’s 5 people “gomei desu”

これだけです。
kore dake desu
That’s it.

0:46

後は「おタバコはすわれますか」、「喫煙ですか、禁煙ですか」と聞くので
ato wa otabako wo suwaremasu ka kitsuen desu ka kinnen desu ka to kiku no de
After that, you will be asked if you want a smoking or non smoking seat

0:55

吸う時は「喫煙です」、吸わない時は「禁煙席です」,「禁煙です」というふうに答えてください。
Suu toki wa kitsuen desu, suwanai toki wa kinen seki desu, kinen desu toiu fuu ni kotaete kudasai.
If you smoke you say “kitsuen desu”, if you don’t “kinen seki desu” or “kinen desu” which is how to reply.

More Japanese language learning videos

 Introduce yourself in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 1: How to introduce yourself in Japanese | In this video, we learn some basic useful greetings in Japanese.
 Useful daily Japanese phrases Learn Japanese Pod Video 2: Useful daily phrases you use a lot in Japanese | In this lesson, you will learn some must-know daily phrases in Japanese
  Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 19.03.04  Learn Japanese Pod Video 3: Phrases for leaving your house – itte kimasu  | “Itte-kimasu” is perhaps one of the most used phrases in Japanese and you should definitely learn it! Check out the video to see what it means.
 tadaima  Learn Japanese Pod Video 4: Phrases for when you get home – Tadaima – Okaeri nasai | In this video you will learn some great phrases used everyday in Japan when returning home
 Apologize in Japanese  Learn Japanese Pod Video 5: How to apologize in Japanese | As they say in Japan, if it’s your fault, apologize, and if it isn’t, apologize. Check out how to apologize in Japanese.
Useful Japanese Restaurant Phrases 1 Learn Japanese Pod Video 6: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 1 | In this video you’ll learn how to get seats on your arrival at a restaurant
ordering drinks in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 7: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 2 | In this video you’ll learn how to order drinks in Japanese at a restaurant after being shown to your table

Interviews

 Zen Meditation in Kyoto 1) Interview with a Zen monk on meditation in Kyoto

 

 

 

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Blog LJP Videos Useful Japanese Phrases Videos

4. Learn Japanese Pod – Tadaima & Okaeri nasai

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In this video, Tomoe teaches us two must-know Japanese phrases for when you get home. They are ”ただいま” tadaima – which means “I’m home”. The other phrase ”おかえりなさい” okaeri nasai means something like welcome back and is the answer to tadaima.

This is used everyday in households across Japan so this is a great phrase to know.

More Japanese language learning videos

Introduce yourself in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 1: How to introduce yourself in Japanese | In this video, we learn some basic useful greetings in Japanese.
Useful daily Japanese phrases Learn Japanese Pod Video 2: Useful daily phrases you use a lot in Japanese | In this lesson, you will learn some must-know daily phrases in Japanese
Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 19.03.04 Learn Japanese Pod Video 3: Phrases for leaving your house – itte kimasu | “Itte-kimasu” is perhaps one of the most used phrases in Japanese and you should definitely learn it! Check out the video to see what it means.
tadaima Learn Japanese Pod Video 4: Phrases for when you get home – Tadaima – Okaeri nasai | In this video you will learn some great phrases used everyday in Japan when returning home
Apologize in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 5: How to apologize in Japanese | As they say in Japan, if it’s your fault, apologize, and if it isn’t, apologize. Check out how to apologize in Japanese.
Useful Japanese Restaurant Phrases 1 Learn Japanese Pod Video 6: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 1 | In this video you’ll learn how to get seats on your arrival at a restaurant
ordering drinks in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 7: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 2 | In this video you’ll learn how to order drinks in Japanese at a restaurant after being shown to your table

Interviews

Zen Meditation in Kyoto 1) Interview with a Zen monk on meditation in Kyoto
Categories
Blog LJP Videos Videos

3. Useful Japanese Phrases – Itte kimasu

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When learning Japanese for the first time, it’s a great idea to learn high frequency phrases commonly used in daily life in Japan. It’s also good to learn phrases that are uniquely Japanese, that don’t translate well into English but give an insight into the culture. One such phrase is いってきます itte kimasu. It literally means “I’m going and coming”. It is used when leaving the house and means something like “I’m going out now, see you later”. In response to that you would say “いってらっしゃい” which means something like “see you later”.

You’ll hear this a lot when people are leaving a house in the morning for work for example. So commit this to memory and learn it well young Japanese Jedi, it will serve you well!

Oh and you thought the learning was over…WRONG! Here is the transcription to the video so you can learn some really natural Japanese as spoken by Tomoe in this video. HOW COOL IS THAT?!

“What? So you mean this one video is good for both beginner and more advanced students of Japanese, AND I can learn some unscripted natural Japanese at the same time?” I hear you ask.

THAT’S RIGHT my trainee Japanese ninjas. Thank me later…

But I digress…

Now, let’s check out the transcript.

Japanese transcript:

次のビデオはすごい簡単なんだけどいつもよく使われて言葉です。家を出る時に「いってきます」。中に家に残ってる人が「いってらっしゃい」、気をつけてね。も一回言います。いってきます、いってらっしゃい。はい、これだけです。簡単です。

Pronunciation:

tsugi no bideo wa sogoi kantan nan dakedo itsumo yoku tsukawareteru kotoba desu. ie wo deru toki ni itte kimasu. naka ni ie ni nokotteru hito ga itterasshai, ki o tsukete ne. mo ichido iimasu. itte kimasu, itterasshai. hai, kore dake desu. kantan desu.

English translation:

This next video is really easy but has a commonly used word in it. When you leave the house, you say “itte kimasu”. The person remaining in the house says “itte rasshai”, take care. I’ll say it one more time. Itte kimasu, itte rasshai. Right, that’s it. It’s easy.

More Japanese language learning videos

Introduce yourself in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 1: How to introduce yourself in Japanese | In this video, we learn some basic useful greetings in Japanese.
Useful daily Japanese phrases Learn Japanese Pod Video 2: Useful daily phrases you use a lot in Japanese | In this lesson, you will learn some must-know daily phrases in Japanese
Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 19.03.04 Learn Japanese Pod Video 3: Phrases for leaving your house – itte kimasu | “Itte-kimasu” is perhaps one of the most used phrases in Japanese and you should definitely learn it! Check out the video to see what it means.
tadaima Learn Japanese Pod Video 4: Phrases for when you get home – Tadaima – Okaeri nasai | In this video you will learn some great phrases used everyday in Japan when returning home
Apologize in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 5: How to apologize in Japanese | As they say in Japan, if it’s your fault, apologize, and if it isn’t, apologize. Check out how to apologize in Japanese.
Useful Japanese Restaurant Phrases 1 Learn Japanese Pod Video 6: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 1 | In this video you’ll learn how to get seats on your arrival at a restaurant
ordering drinks in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 7: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 2 | In this video you’ll learn how to order drinks in Japanese at a restaurant after being shown to your table

Interviews

Zen Meditation in Kyoto 1) Interview with a Zen monk on meditation in Kyoto
Categories
Blog LJP Videos Videos

2. Useful daily Japanese phrases

In this video, you will learn some really useful casual Japanese greetings and phrases for everyday life in Japan.

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Here are the phrases used in today’s video:

元気? Genki – How are you?

If you want to say this more formally you could say お元気ですか ogenki desu ka. The reply would be something like 元気です。genki desu – I’m fine. In this video, Tomoe showed us the casual version used between good friends with a simple “genki” with rising intonation to indicate it. Simply answer with a simple “genki”.

まあまあ – maa maa – I’m so so

最近どう? saikin dou – How’ve you been?

最近いい感じ – saikin ii kanji – I’ve been good

あんまりよくない – anmari yokunai – not so good

大丈夫?- daijoubu? – are you OK?

久しぶり – hisashiburi – long time no see

More Japanese language learning videos

 Introduce yourself in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 1: How to introduce yourself in Japanese | In this video, we learn some basic useful greetings in Japanese.
 Useful daily Japanese phrases Learn Japanese Pod Video 2: Useful daily phrases you use a lot in Japanese | In this lesson, you will learn some must-know daily phrases in Japanese
  Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 19.03.04  Learn Japanese Pod Video 3: Phrases for leaving your house – itte kimasu  | “Itte-kimasu” is perhaps one of the most used phrases in Japanese and you should definitely learn it! Check out the video to see what it means.
 tadaima  Learn Japanese Pod Video 4: Phrases for when you get home – Tadaima – Okaeri nasai | In this video you will learn some great phrases used everyday in Japan when returning home
 Apologize in Japanese  Learn Japanese Pod Video 5: How to apologize in Japanese | As they say in Japan, if it’s your fault, apologize, and if it isn’t, apologize. Check out how to apologize in Japanese.
Useful Japanese Restaurant Phrases 1 Learn Japanese Pod Video 6: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 1 | In this video you’ll learn how to get seats on your arrival at a restaurant
ordering drinks in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 7: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 2 | In this video you’ll learn how to order drinks in Japanese at a restaurant after being shown to your table

Interviews

 Zen Meditation in Kyoto 1) Interview with a Zen monk on meditation in Kyoto

 

Categories
Blog LJP Videos Videos

1. How to introduce yourself in Japanese

In this video, Tomoe teaches you how to introduce yourself in Japanese.

Transcript:
こんにちはともえです。これから六ヶ月間一緒に日本語を勉強して行きましょう。頑張ろう!こんにちは。今日は自己紹介の仕方を勉強します。初めまして、ともえです。よろしくお願いします。

Hello, I’m Tomoe and over the next 6 months let’s study Japanese together. You can do it! So today we’re going to study how to introduce yourself in Japanese.

Hajimemashite means “nice to meet you”.

Tomoe desu means “I am Tomoe”.

Yoroshiku onegaishimasu means something like “please be kind to me” or “nice to meet you”.

We usually use it at the end of a self introduction.

Grammar note:

A more formal way to introduce yourself would be:

はじめまして、アレックスと申します。どうぞよろしくお願いします。

Hajimemashite, Alex desu. Dōzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

Nice to meet you, I’m Alex. (Nice to meet you)

So what does all that mean? Firstly, はじめまして hajimemashite comes from the verb hajimeru or to begin and in this context it means “Nice to meet you” when meeting someone for the first time.

Next, アレックスと申します Alex to mōshimasu means I am Alex although this uses the polite form 申す mōsu which means to be called.

Finally we have どうぞよろしくお願いします Dōzo yoroshiku onegaishimasu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu literally means “please treat me well” or “I count on your good favor” but in this context it is just put at the end of the introduction and has the same meaning as “nice to meet you”.

Dōzo at the beginning makes it more polite.

Finally, if you want a more casual version you could say:

アレックスです。よろしく。

Alex desu. Yoroshiku.

I’m Alex, nice to meet you.

This would be used in a casual encounter between younger people of similar social standing.

More Japanese language learning videos

 Introduce yourself in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 1: How to introduce yourself in Japanese | In this video, we learn some basic useful greetings in Japanese.
 Useful daily Japanese phrases Learn Japanese Pod Video 2: Useful daily phrases you use a lot in Japanese | In this lesson, you will learn some must-know daily phrases in Japanese
  Screen Shot 2015-01-10 at 19.03.04  Learn Japanese Pod Video 3: Phrases for leaving your house – itte kimasu  | “Itte-kimasu” is perhaps one of the most used phrases in Japanese and you should definitely learn it! Check out the video to see what it means.
 tadaima  Learn Japanese Pod Video 4: Phrases for when you get home – Tadaima – Okaeri nasai | In this video you will learn some great phrases used everyday in Japan when returning home
 Apologize in Japanese  Learn Japanese Pod Video 5: How to apologize in Japanese | As they say in Japan, if it’s your fault, apologize, and if it isn’t, apologize. Check out how to apologize in Japanese.
Useful Japanese Restaurant Phrases 1 Learn Japanese Pod Video 6: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 1 | In this video you’ll learn how to get seats on your arrival at a restaurant
ordering drinks in Japanese Learn Japanese Pod Video 7: Useful Japanese phrases for restaurants in Japan 2 | In this video you’ll learn how to order drinks in Japanese at a restaurant after being shown to your table

Interviews

 Zen Meditation in Kyoto 1) Interview with a Zen monk on meditation in Kyoto

 

Categories
Blog Videos

Today’s Kanji: 海老フライ Ebi Furai

Ebi Fry

Today’s Kanji was inspired by this genius TV advertisement which features 海老フライ ebi furai or fried shrimp. I’m not sure if this is actually possible or just clever editing. However, 11 out of 10 for insane entertainment. Well done Japan.

For you real kanji nerds out there, other kanji in the video included:

3秒クッキング san byou kukkingu – 3 second cooking

空気ガス kuuki / gasu – Compressed air / Flammable gas

危険ですので絶対にマネしないでくださいkiken desu no de zettai ni mane shinai de kudasai – As this is dangerous, please don’t copy

You can see where this is going…enjoy!

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Japan travel Videos

Zen Meditation in Kyoto

Zen Meditation in Kyoto
Taka Kawakami, vice Abbot of Shunkoin Temple in Kyoto

When traveling to Japan, Kyoto is an absolute must-destination for those wanting to explore the culture and history of the country. Kyoto and its spiritual sister city Nara have a wealth of temples, shrines, gardens and beautiful vistas for the visitor to take in and enjoy. However if you want to explore the spiritual side of the culture in more depth and come away with a really memorable experience then I recommend checking out meditation classes run by local monks.

Shunkoin (春光院) temple is one such temple that provides daily meditation classes run by the Vice-abbot Taka Kawakami. During a trip to Kyoto I stayed at the guest house in Shukoin temple grounds and the next morning took part in a mediation class the following day.

The class itself was 90 minutes long and consisted of two 15 minute meditation sessions followed by a talk about the temple and how to incorporate Zen philosophy into your daily life. The mediation sessions weren’t too strenuous and were just enough for a beginner like myself.

Kawakami sensei was an extremely relaxed, friendly and down-to-earth teacher and quick to dispel popular misconceptions or myths about what Zen meditation is all about. As he said to our class “Zen meditation won’t give you magical or spiritual powers, it’s more like taking a daily supplement, simple conditioning for your peace of mind”.

The most fascinating part of his talk was about how the latest advances in neurology and brain science tie in with traditional meditation. It was a really interesting and educational experience and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to experience Zen philosophy and meditation first hand.

At the end of his class I asked to interview him and he graciously accepted. Here is the interview we did:

Interview with Rev. Taka Kawakami about Zen Meditation

Could you tell me a little about yourself and your temple?

My name is Taka Kawakami and actually I am vice abbot of this Shunkoin Temple in Kyoto. Then, this temple here, we have a history of 420 years.

What is Zen meditation all about?

So, Zen meditation, it’s more like conditioning of your mind, so you can keep your inner peace, you can keep living in the moment. Because living in the moment is the core idea of Zen Buddhism.

What’s a common misconception regarding Zen meditation?

I think a common mistake or misunderstanding about meditation is people try to achieve something during the meditation, people are trying to become something else by doing the meditation too.

But actually the idea is meditation is just the conditioning of your mind right? So it helps you to achieve something when you do your daily activity in real life. It’s not like, you know, you become some spiritual being or anything like that.

Also, you know, people try to empty their minds but it’s not like you have to clear your mind in this case. You try to eliminate your ego. So that’s not the same thing, it’s what’s important.

How should you practice meditation?

So when you do meditation, you don’t need to worry about, do you have to go to class or you know,  a temple, you find your place in the bedroom or bathroom any place you feel comfortable. And not close your eyes or open your eyes, just focus on your breathing. Maybe 5 to 25 minutes, something like that, you know? It’s really casual. You know it’s not like you have to do it in any strict manner.

What’s an important concept behind Zen meditation?

I suppose in Zazen, probably, many people are talking about emptying your mind and Mushin (無心) and that’s probably the key word. But Mushin in this case is not like emptying your mind, no mind, it’s not like that. You have to eliminate your ego, so it’s no ego. So, Mushin means no ego. That’s the idea. It’s very useful for the Zen practice.

Useful Kanji

  • – Zen

 

  • 春光院 – Shunkoin temple

 

  • 瞑想 – Meisou – Meditation

 

  • 無心 – Mushin – Without sparking controversy or starting an epic wikipedia length article on the subject, “Mushin” at least according to Kawakami sensei is more about dissolving your ego rather than clearing your mind or heart. Check the video above.

 

Zen meditation in Kyoto

Details:

If you’d like to try meditation for yourself at 春光院 Shunkoin temple, the first thing to do is check the website for details about times and holidays as they don’t run everyday. http://shunkoinzentemple.blogspot.jp/

You can also check out their website for details regarding about staying in their guest house which is about 5000 JPY to 6500JPY. The rooms are quite simple but quite comfortable and clean. They have comfy futons and a tatami floor so you can get the real experience.

 


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Categories
Blog Videos

Furusato Matsuri – Japanese Cultural Event in Tokyo

The other day I received an interesting request to do some narration for Fuji TV. (Yes, if you recognized the voice in the video, that is me.) The event is titled Furusato Matsuri which roughly translates as “home town festival” and showcases the best of regional Japanese culture including festivals and food. It’s held every January in Tokyo Dome and apparently attracts well over 370,000 people.

I obviously need to get out more as I had never heard of this festival before. I’ll definitely check it out next time and it would be great to do a Learn Japanese Pod Get Together there.

This particular video features examples of regional Japanese dishes including 丼 donburi – a popular rice bowl dish with various toppings. Typical toppings include 肉- niku – meat, 魚 – sakana – fish and 天ぷら tempura.

Here is a list of some of the toppings often used in donburi in more detail:

香箱ガニ – Kobako Gani – Kobako Crab or snow crab

白エビ – shiro ebi – White shrimp

うなぎ – unagi – Eel

Some other useful words:

In the video at about 2:50, one guy gives his opinion of the food and says:

“うん、おいしいです” – un, oishii desu – Yes, this is delicious.

Another way to say delicious in Japanese is:

うまい – umai – delicious

And just for fun, here’s how you would say it using Osaka slang:

まじやばいで – maji yabai de – Delicious

I’ll be posting more videos about Furusato Matsuri soon so stay tuned!

 

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Videos

What’s your favorite word in Japanese?

One warm Friday night in Osaka, I ventured out with my old tape camera (yes tape!) and videoed some of my friends and asked them what their favorite Japanese word or phrase was. Here are the results in order as they appeared on the video:                                                   

お腹がぺこぺこ – onaka ga peko peko – I’m hungry (usually used by kids)

よく食べて、よく寝て、よく遊ぶ – yoku tabete, yoku nete, yoku asobu – eat well, sleep well and have lots of fun

忍者 – ninja

一所懸命 – isshoukenmei – as much as you can / to your best abilities

なんでやねん?! – nande ya nen – What the hell? (This is Osaka dialect and a very popular word as you will see in the video

どうないやねん – dou nai yanen – What the hell? Similar to nande ya nen and also Osaka dialect

もうええわ – mou ee wa – That’s enough (Osaka dialect)

うまい – umai – delicious / yummy

美味しい – oishii – delicious

かわいい – kawaii – cute

愛してる – aishiteru – I love you

もうほんまに何やってんのよ? – mou honma ni nani yatten no yo – What the hell are you doing?

めんどくさい – mendokusai – a hassle

– samurai

キラキラ – kirakira – sparkly

すごいでしょう – sugoi deshou – that’s awesome isn’t it?

むかつく – mukatsuku – annoying

ありがとう – arigatou – Thank you

So, what’s your favorite Japanese word? Leave your comments below!