i have no idea whether Google Language Tools translated it appropriately... "私は日本を訪問する!" is what it spewed out. does anyone know how it ought to be pronounced or articulated?! there's only one word or two characters i am certain of: "日本" == Nippon; the Japanese word for Japan... and i am guessing that "訪問" has to do with visiting... even though it looks to me more like 'interview' or a term for some "official diplomatic visit"... everything else is japanese to me!
in any case, i will be stopping in Japan, for about 5 days en-route to Singapore (for a family wedding & US-visa-paper-bureaucracy) in the first week of July! i am attending a conference in Yokohama, during which i will embarrass myself in front of some strangers trying to explain to them what it is i am trying to investigate in my research.
that aside, i was wondering if any of you might have some good suggestions of where i ought to go, during my spare time... and how i might find the chocolate boutique of Pierre Hermé Paris, in Tokyo... i've heard so much about it... and am really intrigued.
i hope to visit the RIKEN institute and i am also thinking of maybe hiking up Mt Fuji... if i can fit it in; i wonder if anyone has done that and would care to let me know how to get to the starting trail? i'd love to try some wonderful Japanese sweets and food... and visit a shrine to make some wishes for the future, too!
drop me a line or two if any of you dear readers have suggestions for me e.g. accommodations / places to visit / things to try etc.! i'd really appreciate it! =C)
posted by ~overacuppa~ on Monday, 28 May, 2007 at 13:37 hrsEmail me May! Or call me on my cell, I went to Japan a few times last year, lotsa travel tips.
Posted by: Eugenia on Wednesday, 30 May, 2007 at 00:37 hrsThis is so cool!!! lucky you! wow! Japan! good travels for that! I will keep my ears stiff to hear if someone has got tips. i think susanti was in Japan for a while- you might contact her
Posted by: Ulli on Wednesday, 30 May, 2007 at 04:32 hrsthanks peeps... will email soon!
Posted by: overacuppa on Wednesday, 30 May, 2007 at 10:56 hrsHello May! Since you ask... "私は日本を訪問する" would be read "watashi wa nihon o hōmon suru". ("Nippon" is quite an old-fashioned and formal-sounding way of reading 日本 - these days people usually say "Nihon" for Japan). The above sentence is fine grammatically, though I think you might be right about the nuances of 訪問. Probably a more natural way of saying it would be "watashi wa nihon e ikimass" ("I'm going to Japan!"), which you could write: "私は日本へ行きます" if you wanted to...
Hope that helps!
Posted by: nick on Tuesday, 12 June, 2007 at 12:50 hrsPS. Have a great time!
Posted by: nick on Tuesday, 12 June, 2007 at 12:52 hrsNICK!!! arigato! you are amazing! suburashi! (sp?!?)
how can i say, in Japanese: "Excuse me, my Japanese is hardly adequate, would you speak English with me?" or something to that extent?!
i need to learn that...
i might be doing a short 1-day trip to Hakone instead from Yokohama and save Tokyo for another time. was there (in Tokyo) with my parents and brothers when i was little wee me.
Hey May! Sorry I'm slow replying!
"Do you speak English?" is "eigo o hanasemass ka?" in Japanese. If you want to say "Excuse me, I don't speak Japanese", you could say "sumimasen, nihongo wa hanasemasen ga".
Only a few days before you go, I guess... I'm quite jealous, you know!
Posted by: nick on Friday, 29 June, 2007 at 09:35 hrsthanks Nick!!! you are a STAR!
send me your London add. so i might get an excuse to visit the Japanese post-office etc.! =)
i leave tomorrow morning!
Ok, will do! I guess you'll be there by now... Hope you have a fantastic time.
(By the way, now I think about it, you can drop that last 'ga' from "I can't speak Japanese". It's not really necessary. Anyway, good luck!)
Posted by: nick on Monday, 2 July, 2007 at 08:22 hrs*Note: in case you were thinking of leaving a comment and the option isn't here anymore... it is because the comment section of each entry is closed after sometime to prevent malicious comments... if you are looking for the actual entry, type in the keyword(s) in the little box on the main page http://overacuppa.com where it says "fossicking pebbles & seashells" and press *search*... thank you for popping by and happy browsing!