Hey guys! I was wondering if anyone had tips for making the best out of an internship I’m planning on completing in Japan soon. It’ll be around 4 months (more if I’m lucky haha), and while I am at an intermediate conversational level atm thanks to just talking with friends and family, I’m not too confident in more formal settings unfortunately.
I think the best tip really is just to talk to as many native speakers as I can, but I was wondering if anyone had some other pointers they found useful while staying in Japan for language immersion? I’m thinking of perhaps attending a language school there as well to really drive in what I should be learning. Thanks so much!
2 comments
Intermediate conversation is a good level to be at for a first experience in country! I would say be proactive about finding opportunities to use the language. Especially in Tokyo it can be easy to get trapped in an English bubble.
Be prepared for the reality that it might be harder than you expect to make Japanese friends who want to speak Japanese with you. Being friends through a language barrier is tough (ask yourself, how many of your current friends are recent immigrants? How many of your friends only speak English at an intermediate level?). Some people just don’t want to deal with it. People who actively want to befriend foreigners often have good English and want to speak English. That’s not to say it’ll be impossible to find friends to speak Japanese with, but don’t feel like you’re doing something wrong if it takes you a while to make Japanese friends who you speak to in Japanese.
Try to immerse yourself in Japanese as much as possible, but linguistic overload is a real thing. Sometimes your brain will get tired and overwhelmed and you’ll just want to spend an evening watching Netflix in English. That’s totally ok. Give your brain breaks when it needs it
Pay attention to how the native speakers around you talk. Pay attention to the phrases they use etc and try to mimic them. (Just be careful of sociolinguistic implications. Maybe don’t use phrases you learned in a bar at the office)
Learn to laugh at your own mistakes and faux pas. Speak as much as possible. Don’t let a fear of mistakes or embarrassing yourself stop you
> I was wondering if anyone had some other pointers they found useful while staying in Japan for language immersion?
Use Japanese as much as possible. Use foreign languages as little as possible. This applies to everything including the internet and media consumption, not just conversations.