Would it be possible to live in an edo period village in japan?

Question:

Just wondering, would it be possible to live a simple life, growing vegetables, waking up early in the morning. going to shrines. etc?

Answer:

No.

Do Japanese people write their names in hiragana, katakana, or kanji?

Question:

Answer:

Predominantly, kanji, but some people have hiragana names. Like my cousin's first name is hiragana, but all last names are kanji. Only foreign names are in katakana.

What type/style of sneakers(shoes) are popular with girls in Japan?

Question:

ages 16~22 range

Can you include some pics of the shoes seen commonly among fashionable girls? ^^
*EXclude heels, flats, sandals, flip flops
Just shoes.

Answer:

@@@@@@@@@@CONVERSE@@@@@@@@@@

Is outdoor equipment (tents, boots, sleeping bags, etc) cheaper in Japan than in Australia?

Question:

I want to go hiking in Japan this august and I might need to buy some new gear. Should I buy in Australia or Japan?

Answer:

It depends on each store. We can't say that it's cheaper in one country than the other.

How is Japan doing right now? Are things getting better after the disaster?

Question:

Answer:

Japan was hit hard by the disaster, but things have slowly been returning to normal now. Most tourist attractions in Japan are now open, although some may have shortened opening hours to conserve power. All international airports are operating and this even includes Sendai Airport, which was damaged by the tsunami, and the bullet trains are all running as normal.

Is it Safe to Travel to Japan
http://japan-australia.blogspot.com/2011…

Does this sounds right(Japanese language)?

Question:

Watashi wa okane ga arimasen kara: Disneyland e ikimasen.
Watashi wa okane ga arimasen ga: Jidou Koen e ikimasu

I was hoping in english it would mean like this:

I don't have any money,that is why i didn't go to Disneyland
I don't have any money but I can still go to the Childrens Playgrounds for free :(

That is how I hope the words are expressed.

Note:
I'm still a beginner in the japanese language.

If you think there is a bit better way for expressing the words more accurate.

Watashi wa okane ga arimasen ga:___________________.(Fill in the blanks) :)

Thanks

Answer:

'Disney land e ikimasen' refers to the present tense, say 'ikimasen deshita' for past tense,
'Koen' means park in general, but not specifically a children's playground (but it can mean that too).
'Jidou' refers to automatic, free of control by something, literally (from kanji) 'self-moving'
'Muryou' means free of charge.

watashi wa okane ga arimasen ga: muryou de koen e ikemasu
'ikemasu' means 'can go' instead of 'ikimasu' ('go')

Help with japanese sentence..?

Question:

have a bit of difficulty with this sentence from a 読み物
。

英語でも, "Thank you for the other day." とか,"It was good to see you the other day." などと言えないことはないが、日本語の　”先日はども”　のような決まり文句にはなっ…

I understand most of it but I'm a little perplexed about the phrases:
決まり文句にはなっていない。
and
などと言えないことはないが

It is a little confusing.

would appreciate all the helps.
thank you guys.

Answer:

in this case, 決まり文句 describes "frequently used phrases", but I would call 先日はどうも as one of greeting phrases (or simply a 'conjunction' to start a conversation)

などと言えないことはないが
literally means "I won't deny that you can say something like that" (not deny = positive)
--> "I think that you (barely) can say ...."

How to say "children's playground" in japanese?

Question:

Please put it in this sentence:

watashi wa "Children's playground" e ikimasu.

Answer:

I would say "公園 kouen"
(most of the public park in Japan are usually equipped with play structures)

If a Japanese child says "kouen ni ikitai", that means "Please take me a (children's) playground"
or, if you want to really focun on children's, "子供の遊び場 kodomo no asobi-ba"
http://ejje.weblio.jp/content/%E3%81%82%…

What are some souvenirs?

Question:

What are some souvenirs that represent japan's culture and/or natural resources?

Answer:

Chop sticks, rice bowls, sake, ...

Is Tokyo, Japan a "forward capital"?

Question:

Answer:

It depends on what you mean by forward capital.

What is the difference between Kokumin Kenkou Hoken and Shakai Hoken?

Question:

I'm currently working in Japan (just got my work visa last week, hooray). I'm trying to find out about the pros and cons of each insurance system.

Here are some specific questions I have:
1. Does it matter which one I have for the purpose of renewing my visa? Can I get a work visa renewal either way, or is Shakai Hoken required for renewal?
2. If I am covered by KKH, do I still have to pay into the pension system?
3. What are the advantages of Shakai Hoken over KKH?
4. What are the advantages of KKH over Shakai Hoken?

Thanks in advance for any competent, polite answers.

Answer:

1. you'd better ask authority (or a lawyer)
2. I think you can refuse paying pension. In case you're covered by SH, the fee is automatically taken from your salary. (see below)
3. if you get sick quite often, that'll be some advantages.....
4. I think it depends on how much you earn.

- 国民健康保険 kokumin-kenkou-hoken
( for freelance, in case that your company doesn't cover, or for jobless people)
See "Designated Ceilings for Personally-borne medical expenses"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_He…
The full English pdf :
http://www.shigakokuho.or.jp/kokuho_sys/…

- 社会保険 Shakai-Hoken：（in case your company pays the fee from your salary that includes "employee's insurance", etc.） http://www.sia.go.jp/e/

Why do Japanese like "cute" things (not "beautiful")?

Question:

Like in "Taylor Swift is cute." I would say: "Taylor Swift is beautiful".
I would use "cute" only when describing children, animals, toys or children's clothes etc.
What's the real meaning of "kawaii"?

Answer:

you can use 'kawaii' even for grandma, or grandpa...(lol)

If I use 'kawaii' (for people) when someone is
charming
honest
pure
natural
acting naturally
innocent
simple
naive
novice/amateur-like
not necessarily nice-looking

I still remember a school teacher (in elementary) said, "a woman should have something 'kawaii' that can be only her lips, voice, fingers, acting etc. "

---------- just one more thing to add:
they are usually 'SMALL'

How do you say "Fireworks Show" in Japanese? Please and thank you.?

Question:

Kanji and Romaji if you don't mind. Thank you!

Answer:

花火ショー, which is just a direct translation of fireworks show, makes sense, but we don't put it that way.
We usually refer to firework shows as 花火大会 hanabi taikai.

How to read Japanese eras (years) Shouwa, Heisei etc?

Question:

Shouwa era ended in 1986. Did it include 61 Western years? How does that system work?

Answer:

It's pretty simple:

The number corresponds to the number of years the Emperor has reigned.

Showa ended in 1989 (not 1986). To be exact, Showa Period ended January 7, 1989 (the day Hirohito died). Heisei began January 8, 1989.

For Heisei, he has been reigning for 11 years. 11+1989 = Heisei 23.

Showa Period lasted from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989. It lasted 64 years.

As I mentioned above, Showa ended on January 7, 1989 (that would be Showa 64) , on January 8, 1989 it became Heisei 1.

I would like to have some japanese friends?

Question:

i am very much interested in japanese and would like to make some japanese people

Answer:

In order to 'make Japanese people' you would have to be Japanese yourself and find a Japanese mate. If you just want penpals, Google will help you find some sites.

JAPANESE can someone correct this?

Question:

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/153…
http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/202…

Answer:

10QI 1-g 2-a 3-f 4-b 5-h 6-c 7-d 8-e
10QII 1.として 2.にとって,にとって 3.にとって 4.きっかけに 5.にともなって

12QI 1-a 2-b 3-f 4-c 5-d 6-h 7-e 8-g
12QII 1.はともかく 2.はもとより 3.をもとにして 4.をはじめ

About Japanese celebrities (rebellious, perfect and overrated..)?

Question:

Which Japanese celebrities are famous for being:

1. rebellious
2. perfect in all ways
3. overrated and annoying (celebrities that are not liked but appear on media a lot)

I am asking this because of curiosity and because I want to learn few more famous Japanese names.

Answer:

1. Sawajiri strikes me as the rebellious type---she's the one who shocked the Japanese media by saying "betsu ni" during an interview----"whatever," basically, which to the Japanese was a shock. A little bit of humanity from a teenage girl is swiftly punished by the press and fans alike. Good lord, she was a teenager for God's sake. I don't know why they expect her to be Mother Teresa.

Another one who was in the news during the 2010 Winter Olympics was the dred-locked snowboarder Kokubo-san. He looks like your typical boarder/skater you will see in California, Colorado, Europe,
Canada. He did not tuck his dress shirt in when he walked into the Olympic village with other Japanese team members. OMFG!!!! This is a national crisis!
And then during a press conference where he was made to apologize, he did an extremely insincere apology, just going through the motions. It was quite funny. But the Japanese were disgusted with him.
Another sports figure was the Sumo Yokozuna Asashoryu, who broke every rule in the Sumo Book, called in sick, then went home to Mongolia and played soccer with his friends, and he was confrontational and rude with the press most of the time. He was hated by most Japanese. I was his biggest fan! Go Mongolia!!!

The common theme here is that Japanese people, like Americans, love to be all up in the business of their celebrities. And when their celebrities fall from grace, they expect certain things, like a tearful apology. Tsuyoshi from SMAP got drunk a few years ago and ran around naked. He seems like a good bloke, but he got hammered and acted dumb. Well he apologized very sincerely, and won back his fans and more importantly, his corporate sponsors.

So like Americans, they are willing to forgive celebs for transgressions. Usually with Americans, like Robert Downey, Jrit's drugs. Or ladies--with Tiger Woods and David Letterman. That's a universal scandal I think.


2. Perfect----Ishikawa Ryo---this kid is the golden child of Japan, and has been adulated for two or three years now by the press and endorses everything. He is handsome, young, and polite, not to mention a good golfer, in a country that loves golf.
You cannot walk through any town in Japan without seeing his face somewhere---fire prevention signs, medicinal drinks, air conditioning ads. He's everywhere.
(Before this it was Asada Mao, who was a brilliant figure skater. Unfortunately, she didn't quite live up to the hype that was placed on her. But maybe she will have a comeback)

3.Overrated and Annoying-90% of all "owarai geinin." It's is truly amazing that comedians in Japan oftentimes do not have to be funny. About 10% of comedians, who have more than one joke, host all the TV shows in Japan-(these are the ones who are actually witty and funny)-Cream Stew, Downtown, and MC's like Nakai from SMAP and Shimada Shinsuke. And 95% of "teen pop sensations" Morning Musume, AKB48, etc. Only a few keep their celebrity status after hitting the age of 18 or so, which is like 40 years old for lolikon Japanese.

What does the Japanese name, Sakuya, mean? Please and thank you?

Question:

Also, is it girl or boy name? And could you add the kanji and english meaning. Thank you.

Answer:

Sakuya is not a common name. I think it sounds like boy's name.

What it means, depends on kanji you use. One name with one pronunciation can be written in many ways in Japanese.

One example is 佐久哉. But this is just a name, It means nothing.

How do you write the name Kazuo in Japanese?

Question:

Answer:

There are many ways.

和夫
和男
一雄
和雄
一夫
一男
和生
数夫
数男
数雄

Has anyone here been to Tokyo? What were your impressions of it?

Question:

I'm just back from 9 days there and to be honest I didn't rate it nearly as highly as I expected, or what the reports led me to believe. I found it quite intimidating, people staring all the time, got some filthy looks from people for no particular reason (including an old man in a cafe who had a hissy fit when I sat next to him), and the shopping seemed fairly dull and clone-like.
I had been hoping to return with my boyfriend, who is keen to go, for a longer trip soon and wonder now if we should bother... did I just get a poor image and not see the best of it? Are there any particular things that I missed which would make going back worthwhile?
I visited Ginza, Harajuku, Shibuya, Marunouchi, and Akihabara.

Answer:

I'm sorry that you had a bad experience with Tokyo. I have been living in kanagawa for a year now and go to Tokyo almost every weekend. Maybe you were misinterpreting peoples' looks, I have seen people stare at me because I am a foreigner but I think they are just curious, and usually shy too, so those two things combined can kind of come off in the wrong way sometimes. Anytime I have asked people for help though, they have gone out of their way to help me, and when people approach me to speak to me it is always with friendly intentions. Here are some of the highlights of Tokyo:

1. Dogenzaka Love Hotel District in Shibuya
We like checking out the crazy/quirky love hotel rooms, cool if you can find ones with neat wall designs, blacklights, and a karaoke machine. And they always have awesome baths. Oftentimes cheaper than regular hotels too, for overnight stay.

2. Onsens
While Tokyo isn't known for onsens, they do have a few and if you've never been to one it's definitely something you'll want to try. There is a nice one in Minato Mirai, Manyo Club or something, which is also near an awesome giant ferris wheel and arcade area. Minato Mirai is part of Yokohama, so not technically Tokyo but very close.

3. Book-off/Mode-off in Machida
You mentioned shopping, which I usually avoid because of the high prices, but there is a huge four story mode-off in Machida which sells used clothes really cheap but they are all nice, clean, and in good condition. Also book-off is awesome if you haven't been to one.

4. Karaoke
I hope you didn't visit Japan and not do some Karaoke! Especially great combined with alcohol. Big Echo is the largest chain, I think, but there are non chain Karaoke places literally everywhere. You rent a room so it's not embarrassing like public karaoke, but still tons of fun.

5. Fuji-Q Highland
I think it's about 45 mins- 1 hour away from Tokyo, if you are into amusement parks/roller coasters one of the best in the world, Eejanaika, is here. It's one of the "4-d" ones, like X2 at Six Flags, but way better. Kind of a small park otherwise, but a fun day, and a nice view of Mt. Fuji from the rides.

6. Cat Cafes
Not that exciting for most people, but a pretty novel idea, and a nice way to spend an hour or two if you're a fan of cats.

If you're into clubs, there are a lot in Shibuya. And as someone else mentioned, Odaiba is a really nice area, and there's a good view on the train ride over if you get one of the end cars. Not sure if you know about Hyperdia.com but it's extremely helpful. If you visit again I hope you enjoy your stay! :)

Edit: You mentioned you visited Akihabara, did you check out a maid cafe? Those can be entertaining too.

What is more popular in Japan amongst women: Aikido or Karate?

Question:

Answer:

I would say karatedo. Don't forget that women basically have naginatado all to themselves. I think it's fair to say that aikido in Japan is something judoka do once they have finished their competitive judo career and are looking for a new challenge, not something people take up as their first stab at budo.

Is there any chance that I can go to japan?...?

Question:

I am an illegitimate daughter of my mother who is now married to a Japanese....I am already 19 yrs old.. my last name is still from my mother's maiden name... I am worrying if I could have given the chance to visit japan?..or if possible be given the last name of my Japanese step-father.. please give me some ways to go there..

Answer:

You can go on a tourist visa. Unless you get put on your Japanese step-father's family registry, you aren't Japanese and will have to meet all the requirements for a visa as anyone else.

EDIT: Health inspection? People seem to say anything that pops into their heads, regardless of whether is a reflection of reality.

Is Aikido popular in Japan?

Question:

Is it popular with women or just men?

Answer:

I do aikido in Japan and I would say one third of the group are female.

Some have done it since elementary school and some start in their early 40's. Not many females start in the early 20's to early 30's age range.