:: WEEK ONE | JAPANESE LANGUAGE COURSE FOR BEGINNERS in London - with Guest Speaker: "The Experience of Living in Japan"
Week One
Japanese Language Element:
With this being the first class, everyone will introduce themselves
to each other and the group and explain why they are keen to learn
Japanese and to share any experiences they may have with Japanese
culture.
On successful completion of the class, students will be able to:
Be able to say basic Japanese
greetings.
Understand that there are three
fundamentnal Japanese 'alphabets'.
Have repeated all Hiragana,
and Katakana characters with associated correct
pronunciation.
Understand what is meant by the Hiragana
A-line.
Be able to count from one to ten!
To enrol for just this class or the entire course please click here:
Week One
Japanese Cultural Element > The
experience of living in Japan <
In this first cultural lesson, our guest speaker will introduce
some amazing facts about Japan. Japan is a country of surprising
contrasts. The Japanese love to have the latest modern technology
yet Japan's culture and traditions are still very much intact and
visible.
We would never imagine to be able to discuss the entire experience of living in Japan so we selected certain aspects of Japanese lifestyle that we feel are uniquely Japanese. These are: the concept of bowing, the culture of Oseibo, (end of year gift giving), Japanese New Year's Cards, the Ryokan, (a traditional Japanese inn), tea ceremony, and the onsen, (Japanese bath) etiquette and culture.
To prepare you for the lesson, lets go through each of these! Should you have any questions please ask the guest speaker at the end of the talk!
Bowing in Japan
Bowing (ojigi) is a very important custom in Japan, in fact you
will see Japanese people bowing all the time. Bowing is more common
than shaking hands, and certainly more appropriate than kissing
someone of the opposite sex you have been introduced to. It is
certainly impolite not to return a bow to whoever bowed to you.
Bowing contains many messages: it expresses the notion of respect, thanking, greeting, apologising, and so on, so it is definitely worth doing when in Japan. There are different ways of bowing: it depends on the social status or age of the person you are bowing to. If the person is older or has a higher status than you, you are expected to bow deeper and for a longer period of time. Try to bow from the waist. Men should keep their hands by their sides, and women usually put their hands together on their thighs with their fingers touching. If Japanese are in a relaxed setting, they can bow in a nodding fasshion. The most common form of bow would be about 15 degrees. When you arrive in Japan, bow! You will create a positive and polite impression. When you bow, do it with confidence and you will succeed and create a lasting impression.
The culture of Oseibo, (end of year gift
giving)
In Japan, there is a very established culture of gift giving called
Oseibo. Oseibo is the custom of giving gifts to friends,
co-workers, bosses, associates, teachers, relatives and so on. This
Japanese custom is specifically designed to return favours received
during the year. Department stores display many types of oseibo
gifts from October to December. Many Japanese prefer to send their
gifts rather than give them in person, but the more intimate the
relationship, the more the gifts would be given in person no later
than the 20th of December.
The most popular items for oseibo are food and drinks and gift certificates. On each Oseibo gift, the gift giver must put a thin paper called noshi, on which the word "Oseibo" is written.
Japanese New Year's Cards
Sending New Year's cards (nengajo) to relatives, teachers,
classmates, and co-workers is a very important custom in Japan.
Nengajo should be delivered by the first of January and often
contain lottery numbers that allow receipients to win household
products. Japanese post offices deliver them the cards on New
Year's Day. It's a tradition for Japanese people to write their New
Year's cards during December for arrival on the 25th onwards. The
Japan Post Network will fast-track nengajo cards during this
time.
Ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) 旅館
Staying in a Ryokan is perhaps one of the coolest things you can do
in Japan. Ryokan is a type of traditional Japanese hotel dating
from the Edo
period (1603-1868), when they served travelers along Japan's
highways. Ryokans typically feature tatami-matted rooms, communal
baths, and other public areas where visitors may wear a yukata.
Upon entering the Ryokan, the guest is required to take off their
shoes at the entrance and change into the slippers provided, (as is
often the case indoors in Japan).
Comfort and attention to detail are the key factors when enjoying staying in a Ryokan. Guests are expected to eat in the Ryokan and there are normally bathing facilities. It really is an amazing experience and one which we actively promote you do when you visit Japan.
Hot springs, (Onsen) 温泉
Onsen, hot springs, exist throughout Japan. As a volcanically
active country, Japan has thousands of onsen scattered along its
length and breadth. Onsen were traditionally used as public bathing
places and today play a central role in directing Japanese domestic
tourism. Many Ryokan are located near the onsen which are
considered by many Japanese to be the ultimate form of
relaxation.
Along with the Ryokan hot spring culture is the etiquette that goes with having a bath. Inside the bath-house there will be a bucket beside the tub. You are expected to scoop out some water and pour it over yourself to rinse and clean your body before getting in the bathtub or hot spring. Remember not to bring anything into the tub, not even a towel! After your have soaked yourself, wash your body and hair in front of a mirror, remember though, this must be done outside of the tub! Not to do this would be considered anti-social to everyone else!
