When you’re learning on your own
The single biggest improvement to your quality of life in Japan will be learning Japanese. This cannot be overstated. Yes, you can get by in major cities without it, but the more Japanese you learn the better your life will be.

Japanese is a fascinating language, but studying it can be a challenge. Whether it’s the complex writing system, the unfamiliar sentence structure, the heavy emphasis on honorifics, or the plethora of particles, there will inevitably be times when you will feel utterly perplexed and ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?”

Learning any language requires commitment, but Japanese is harder than most. It is widely accepted that for people who do not have an East Asian language background, Japanese is one of the hardest languages to learn.

Learning a new language is never easy, even with languages as similar as (for example) English and Spanish. Between having nothing in common, and the sheer popularity of picking it up, a lot of strange mystique has wrapped itself around the idea of learning Japanese, often leaving people thinking

Last time, we went over some of the most common supposed stumbling blocks to learning Japanese: Structure, kanji, and all the people telling you that it just can't be done, as well as how to deal with it. In this article, we'll be following up with a few last tips to get you started.

In this article we are going to look at the names of the days of the week in Japanese. Not only are these names essential beginners’ vocabulary items, but they also provide a good way to learn some basic kanji. Most of the kanji used for the days of the week are derived from pictographs representing the sun and moon and elemental concepts such fire, water, wood, metal, and earth.