All Blog Comments

Mats K'chad - Cultural Immigration: Jero the Enka Singer

Mats K'chad — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 00:38:41 +0000

I am not an American or Japanese. I'm from Palau and I love listening to Jero. He has a good voice and new style.

Chris - English Skills Classes in Japan

Chris — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:41:05 +0000

Grammar in English is an odd thing. It can generally be approximated so long as the point is gotten across. I should point out that, while improper grammar will initially confuse a native speaker, we'll generally understand what you're trying to say and, if your grammar was particularly bad, we'll try to correct it, hopefully politely, but I can't speak for every English speaker. What will often ensure that your point is completely lost is to have an incredibly thick accent, no matter what your native language is, which can generally only be eliminated through practice of the language in conversation. Don't think that foreign speakers are the only ones that have this problem, either. Often the difference between British and American accents can be fairly large, with different connotations for different words and situations. To further complicate the issue, America itself is large enough where our own regional accents can be so different, one could wonder if we were speaking the same language, but I digress. One main solution would be to integrate conversation with the actual lessons in schools and universities. With class sizes, this may be difficult, but, in the long run, this is going to be the most effective way to learn a new language. Also, coming from someone who's working on their TEFL certificate, is there a lack of native speakers who teach English there by virtue of the exclusion, or is it just a simply that foreign teachers in general are that rare?

Chris - Voice Actors in Japan

Chris — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 16:25:53 +0000

Something that I'd like to point out that you may not be aware of in America: often times, a voice actor/actress will end up doing multiple roles even within the same show or game. In fact, I've noticed points where one voice actor is speaking to themselves by using different voices, though this is a rarity. Also, I'd like to point out that a typical Hollywood actor will not go into voice work. There are exceptions, such as with Patrick Stewart in Oblivion, but these are rare. Often, a live action actor will simply stick with one series until completion and wait until they're able to work on their next series or movie. In fact, were they to switch to voice acting for any length of time, chances are that they'd take a pay cut since, in the long run, voice acting isn't in demand out here by comparison to live action. On your point of voice actors doing something else along with voice acting, we'll run into that, too, but not to the extent that is generally done in Japan. You brought up Mizuki Nana as an example of a voice actor who sings as well, which I'll counter with some of our own live action actors who do something similar. Jack Black, from the band Tenacious D, has done multiple movies and one game where his instructions have essentially been "play your stage persona". Robin Williams, who has become quite famous as an actor, started as a stand up comedian. All in all, it's a great cast. Thanks for the information!

Eddy&hearts; - Yutori Education

Eddy&hearts; — Mon, 31 May 2010 12:44:09 +0000

Coming from a country where we are free to do what we want to do, I can say that yutori is just ok. In the first place, it's the family's role to help the children understand the value of learning. I'm studying not because my school wants me to do it, or the society wants me to do it. I'm studying hard because I want to become a better person and citizen to my country. I chose my own vocation and I'm enjoying it. I do my own stuff, which helps me become more sociable and increase my leadership skills. In my viewpoint, Japan is a perfect place to have a yutori education. Even though the curriculum has been changed, yet the teachers are still good. However, I think it's not good to alter some fundamental principles in a subject matter. If it's really true that Pi 's value has become inaccurate, I think it's really bad. Giving the students time to explore more things and interests will help them become better.

Sandy from Spokane - Retirement Hobbies

Sandy from Spokane — Mon, 17 May 2010 03:56:57 +0000

Thank you, thank you, thank you! I have been researching leisure activities of the Japanese elderly. This is the best information I have found. Well done!

tokyokevin - Time for Rating!

tokyokevin — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 23:53:04 +0000

Good timing. I have an end-of-semester party with these students tonight. I will ask them.

Simo Chen 陳宇潔 - Time for Rating!

Simo Chen 陳宇潔 — Mon, 29 Mar 2010 13:59:01 +0000

Hello, I randomly came across this blog and read the article titled "Young People don't watch TV". Is there any possibility that I could have a chance to talk to the authors via email? That topic is greatly correlated to my thesis and might be of help. Please contact me through my email < 92304021@nccu.edu.tw > or leave a message on my blog < http://www.wretch.cc/blog/BabyVincent > Thank you very much~^^ Thanks a million!

haydos - Foreign Sumo Wrestlers

haydos — Tue, 2 Jun 2009 00:18:32 +0000

what I want to know is where als is sumo played

ruby - Chocolate

ruby — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 09:11:34 +0000

it's changing now, guys can give women "reverse chocolate" but its all very confusing http://japansugoi.com/wordpress/valentines-day-is...

rajagopal - Cup Noodle

rajagopal — Wed, 7 Jan 2009 09:59:04 +0000

some thing to think about.....do you know how people eat noodles in differnt countries try www.rajagopalvk.blogspot.com