I started learning Japanese in 2019. The reasons where a) that I wanted to travel there one day and b) I really like japanese Movies (for Example Lady Snowblood, Stray Cat Rock, Battle Royale, Good Morning) and like to listen to Japanese Music (mostly 70s and 80s).
Unfortunately I can very often be a very lazy and procrastinating person. There were long intervals where I did not actively study and forgot lots of vocab and grammar.
Then I decided to do a working holiday in Japan. From October 2022 to October 2023 I lived and worked in 東京 for one year (Were my 江東区 bros at?).
During my time there, I got slightly better at the language, made friends, watched movies at toho even tough I only understood a fraction, sang karaoke, ate way to much at すき家 and サイゼリヤ, got my first girflriend ever and broke up again, worked two バイトJobs (Fugu restaurant in 新宿 and Italian Restaurant in 銀座), went to an Onsen, and traveled to the surrounding prefactures and also to 大阪.
I enjoyed my time so much there and allready have serious plans to go back (I really didn’t want to leave).
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What frustrates me about myself is my lack discipline, or should I say my enormous waste of time of almost 5 Years. Had I continuously and seriously studied, I could be fluent right now. Basically half a decade for almost nothing in that regard. I have not taken the JLPT yet but I would say Iam only around N4 right now. I’m want to take N3 later this year!
Because of all of this, I now study everyday because Iam serious about becoming fluent and wanting to go back. Because of my experience I know now that in 5 Years my future self would be angry about my past self not having become fluent. Or in reverse If I’m ペラペラ in 5 Years my future self would certanly not think “Damn I should have spent my time doing nothing and just consuming media instead” wwwww
Does anyone else of similar experiences?
日本語頑張ろう
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by yokohama_enjoyer