|
Please help, onegai shimasu~
Link |
by kudoushinichi
on 2006-09-22 21:13:36
|
|
Hello, all! I need a little help here if you don’t mind. You see, there are students from Chiba Kokusai Junior High School visiting my school. Its kinda like a friendly visit or something to know my country better. I volunteered myself to help with the day. I will be given a chance to pair up and go one to one with one of the students there and interact with them (probably bring them on a tour around the school). I am hoping that the people here would help me on what to say, or what to expect from them and most importantly, not embarrassing myself and my school! Let me tell you first that I am 18, a guy and my school is in Malaysia. The students coming would probably be around 15, right? So the most crucial thing is, how do I introduce myself? I know some Japanese, but never really put my knowledge into practice yet… So, if I pair up with a guy, what should I say? Would it necessary to be formal, or should I just be moderately formal? How should I start? Umm… ‘Hajimemashite’? Should I say ‘Yoroshiku’? Is it possible for me to be a little less formal by using ‘Ore’ and ‘Omae’? Haha! Should I ask his name by saying ‘Onamae wa nan desu ka?’ or just drop the ‘nan desu ka?’ If I introduce myself and point at my ruined name tag (I accidentally washed the tag in the washing machine), how do you say ‘The washing machine ruined it’ or something of the sort? The most important thing is, how do you say ‘Sorry, my Japanese is not very good’ or ‘Pardon my Japanese’ and ‘Sorry, I didn’t get that (I don’t understand what you are saying’. If it’s a girl, how do I do it? Should I use the pronoun ‘Boku’ or should I just just use ‘Watashi’? What must I expect them to call me? ‘Sempai’ or ‘Oniisan’? What should I do? What should I avoid doing? What should I expect? Any form of help would be appreciated! Thank you!
Shinjitsu wa itsumo hitotsu!
|
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
Link |
by
on 2006-09-22 22:04:07 |
|
from my personal experience, i would advise you not stress yourself out over formalities. it is well understood by them that non-native speakers will make lots of mistakes, especially regarding formality. ã¯ã˜ã‚ã¾ã—㦠or よã‚ã—ã are both fine. i would recommend you practice "日本語ã¯ã¾ã よã分ã‹ã‚Šã¾ã›ã‚“ã§ã™" (literally: i still don't understand japanese well) so that at least that much comes out clearly once you have introduced yourself, then they will say "no, no, you speak so well!" and you pretend to be surprised to hear it. as for what you call yourself, try NOT to refer to yourself, unless in clarification. this is really a matter of personal choice. if you want to be a dainty female, or sound kind of n00bish, use ç§. if you want to sound ã‹ã“ã„ã„, use 俺. never use 僕 unless you want to be treated like a child :P not that thats bad! it is very very besto to use first names. japanese people will appreciate leaving off the -san/-chan/-kun. (reason being, anyone you would call -san is going to feel like your being more friendly and warm, anyone you would use -chan is going to feel more respected and comfortable, and anyone who you would use -kun is going to not feel intimidated by the scary foreign person!). "the washing machine ruined it" ~ "ã›ã‚“ãŸãã—ã¡ã‚ƒã£ãŸ" (literally: i accidently washed it) "sorry, i didn't get that" ~ "ã“ã‚ã‚“ã€ã‚‚ã†ã„ã‹ã„言ã£ã¦ãã ã•ã„" (literally: sorry, could you say that one more time) definitely talk in whatever language they understand. they will do the same, so probably they will be firing off japanese at you like a machine gun. sometimes the best thing is to nod like an idiot, don't worry, they will do it too. confusion is inevitable, but you're both in the same boat, so enjoy it. :) conversation starter: 人１：「ã¯ã˜ã‚ã¾ã—ã¦ã€(Your first name)ã§ã™ã€‚よã‚ã—ããŠããŒã„ã—ã¾ã™ï¼(One or two subtle bows as you say "yoroshiku" and "onegaishimasu")〠人２：「(Their first name)ã§ã™ã€ã‚ˆã‚ã—ããŠããŒã„ã—ã¾ã™ã€‚日本語ã¯ã˜ã‚‡ã†ãšã§ã™ã〜〠人１：「ã„ã„ãˆã€ã¾ã よãã‚ã‹ã‚‰ãªã„ã§ã™ã€ 
|
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
Link |
by kudoushinichi
on 2006-09-23 01:32:56
|
|
Oh, arigatou! So... will actually introduce their first names, not their family names? So I should adress them without any suffix... that's good info! Any other advice? What about stuff that I should talk about? Hangin around in this forum definitely shows that I'm into anime, but I hear that not everyone is crazy about anime there... So if I am to talk about myself, what should I talk about? I must admit, I am not much of a social person... Heheh Ai... I should be downloading IME one of these days...
Shinjitsu wa itsumo hitotsu!
|
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
|
|
Technically, I don't think you even have to speak Japanese to them at all. They won't be expecting it. So any Japanese you use, whether good or bad, formal or polite, will be very much appreciated and impress them that you took the time to try. Start casually, and they will follow. They are kids too, so formality is a bore. They are unlikely to call you senpai or oniisan. The only thing I would change from gendou's post is to use "hanashimasen" rather than "wakarimasen" when you say you don't speak Japanese very well. Technically, in Japanese, you don't really "know" or "understand" a language, but you can speak it, or not. This is one of the things that actually tells a native Japanese speaker that you aren't a native Japanese speaker, even if you look Japanese. It's a subtle difference that people who learn Japanese as a second language usually don't get. No offense gendou. "iie, nihongo o sukoshi dake hanashimasu." no, I speak very little Japanese. But either one will work. I'd get up to that point and start talking English (or Malay), implying that you have reached the end of your Japanese. You can throw in a few words and phrases or sentences here and there as you go along, but this really does tell them that you really don't know a lot of Japanese and prevents more embarrassment. Don't talk about yourself so much or ask them personal questions. This implies a level of intimacy that people who have just met do not have. You can talk about what your parents do for a living and how many and the ages of any brothers or sisters but much more and you will embarrass them. You can say that you enjoy anime, which is why you are trying to speak Japanese, but take a cue from their reaction as to whether or not you continue with the topic. Since you are the host and they are the guest, ask them what they would like to know about in Malaysia. Here, you can insert things about yourself without embarrassing them. Like if they ask what kinds of food are good, you can talk about your favorite dishes. Then, in turn, ask them what their favorite Japanese foods are. Tell them interesting little things about where you are or about Malaysia in general. |
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
|
| I think they would expect you to speak english... If you're not really confident about your japanese, maybe you should tell them first that you can't speak it well, that will avoid any embarassment. As for what to talk about... Well, i'm not a good at conversating either and i've never been in a tour where the guide is not boring, so, sorry, i can't help you about that... ^^; |
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
Link |
by kudoushinichi
on 2006-09-23 17:25:02
|
|
Oooh! Great advice! Heheh... Eiko-san wa Malaysia-jin desu ka? You sound like one...
Shinjitsu wa itsumo hitotsu!
|
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
|
| iie, america-jin desu. But I've traveled, and I've hosted and hosted by Japanese high school students when I was in school. I also used to have some very nice Malay friends in college. We were in Travel Industry Management school together, and they've gone back to Malay to work after they got their degrees. |
|
Re: Please help, onegai shimasu~
Link |
by
on 2006-10-06 09:14:42 |
|
how about saying "orei wa nihongo ga dekimasen" or "orei wa nihongo e hanasu koto ga zenzen dekimasen"... and using absolutely no japanese after that, and then surprising them by responding to something they say later. its quite amusing what people say when they think you cant understand them. really, it is. if theres a horrible silence, point at something and say asoko ni mieru no ga "place name" desu. = that place that you see is "place name" sono tonari na "place 2 name" desu = next to it is "place 2 name" you prolly live somewhere in/near KL right? where are you bringing them to?   |