Smiletalk Updates That'll Put A Smile On Your Face

It has finally happened! Smiletalk now has an option to listen to Japanese talks!

Now you have a supply of Japanese listening comprehensions that will undoubtably be invaluable resources to you! You should check out our article on how to effectively use listening comprehensions. Don't forget to help support learners in Japan by contributing your own talks!

Don't forget to check out the facebook page for more information and of course the actual website. If you have any ideas please drop them in the forum where I personally read all of them.

Related articles

• Smiletalk website update
• Anime Review: Fruits Basket
• Why Japanese Isn't As Hard As It Looks

Japan Expo

Japan Expo is a huge annual event that takes place in the Paris-Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center and is commonly accepted as the biggest festival about Japanese Culture in Europe. It runs from the 2 of June all the way to the 6th. It is definitely on my bucket list.

History of Japan Expo

In France anime is quite popular and over the years a rather large fan base has been created. People watching anime become more and more drawn to Japanese culture and want to learn about it and experience some of it. The Japan Expo was created to fulfill this need, it is mainly and anime convention but also has Games and many other attractions including special guests and even ninjas!

What Happens at Japan Expo

There are many events over the course of Japan Expo ranging from Fashion to anime to manga to video games and toys. There are contests and games to play and screening of different animes. There is even a place for aspiring artists to draw and the chance to meet some of the voices in some of the animes in France. It's definitely something that anime hardcore anime/manga/Japan fan should experience at some point in their life.

Their Website for more information

http://www.japan-expo-paris.com/

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Fred's Phrases: Anime: Fruits Basket Vocabulary

Earlier this week we reviewed the anime 'Fruits Basket' so why don't we learn a bit of the vocab used in the anime?

Daoist (Taoist) symbols carved in stone: yin-yang and animals of the Chinese zodiac. Qingyanggong temple, Chengdu, Sichuan, China. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Anime Vocabulary Lesson 1: Fruits Basket

Animals of the Zodiac

Eng:             Jap:              Kanji

Mouse:        Nezumi :       鼠

Ox:              Osuushi:       雄牛

Tiger:           Tora:            虎

Rabbit:         Usagi:          ウサギ

Dragon:        Ryū:            竜

Snake:          Hebi:            蛇

Horse:          Uma:            馬

Sheep:          Hitsuji:         羊

Monkey:       Saru:            猿

Rooster:        Ondori:        雄鶏

Dog:             Inu:              犬

Pig:               Buta:            豚

And the extra...

Cat:               Neko:          猫

Miscellaneous words
Landslide:    Jisuberi:        地滑り
Handsome:  Hansamu:      ハンサム
Schoolgirl:   Joshi seito:    女子生徒
Hot spring:   Onsen:          温泉
Curse:          Noroi:           呪い
Hug:            Hōyō:            抱擁

ICE Phrases

In Case of Emergency Phrases

Something that seems only rarely to be taught in schools or in any language class is what to say in case of an emergency. This seems strange to me considering that when you are in trouble that's when you need to know the language most. Here are some phrases to help you in the event of the emergency. I've tried to cover the basics.

I have indicated gender on some of these with (F) meaning female and (M) meaning male. However, using the correct gender will probably be the least of your worries in the event of an emergency.

General

Law & Order (Photo credit: uzaigaijin)

Help! 

Tasukete

Somebody help! 

Dareka tasukete

Run!

Hashire (M) / Hashitte(F)

Run (away)!

Nigero (M) / Nigete (F)

Hurry!

Isoge (M) / Isoide (F)

SVG'd version of File:Asahikage.png, per Graphic Lab request. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Stop! (Stop running.)

Tomare (M) / Tomatte (F)

Stop! (Stop doing.)

Yamero (M) / Yamete (F)

Wait!

Mate (M) / Matte (F)

Get down!

Husero (M) / Husete (F)

Hide!

Kakurero (M) / Kakurete (F)

Look out!

Kiotsukero (M) / Kiotsukete(F)

Be careful!

Kiotsukero (M) / Kiotsukete (F)

Call an ambulance!

Kyuhkyuhsha o yonde

Call the police!

Keisatsu o yonde

Natural Disaster

Earthquake

Jishin da

Fire (on a building)

Kaji da

Fire (on a mountain)

Yama Kaji da

Tsunami

Tsunami da

Flood

Kouzui da

Storm

Arashi da

Remember

You are going to sound foreign and therefore be harder to understand, you need to make an effort to speak slowly and clearly which will be hard if you are panicking.

The symbol of the Japanese law enforcement is featured above along with a photo of an officer seek them out.

If someone is following you get to a busy street with lots of witnesses.

Even if you don't know how to express something in Japanese use your body language and gesture to convey it.

'Unlike many emergency number services, the 119 system in Japan only services fire or ambulance services. Police are called using a separate emergency number, 110. Operators proficient in English and other foreign languages are available in Tokyo.'

Related articles

• I'm in Tokyo this week
• Japanese Conversation: The Basic Phrases You Need

Japanese Yen

The Japanese currency is Yen,   (¥) and $1.00 is equivalent to about  ¥100 but the Japanese yen is more than just money. Each coin is a symbol of a part of Japanese culture. If you look a a 1 yen coin you will notice the sapling visible on the reverse side of the coin. The sapling is a symbol of the healthy growth of Japan.

1993-Heisei-1-Yen (Photo credit: RW Sinclair)

The 5 yen coin is a symbol of agriculture and industry in Japan. If you look carefully at the coin you can see some stalks of rice curved over. Around the center hole you can see the outline of a gear.

English: Japan 5 yen coin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The 10 yen coin has a picture of the famous Phoenix Hall of Byodo-in. It is a Buddhist temple in Uji, Kyoto, originally built in 998 in the Heian period. Nowadays it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its longevity and collection of national treasures.

2010-Heisei-10-Yen (Photo credit: RW Sinclair)

The 50 yen coin has a chrysanthemum (known as 'kiku' in Japanese) on it. The chrysanthemum is special because it is used in the Imperial Seal of Japan by the member of the Imperial family.

Description de l'image : Monnaie yen 50 face (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The 100 Yen coin has those beautiful cherry blossoms associated with Japan. Cherry blossoms only bloom for a short time and thus symbolize cycles in nature and how quickly good things pass. This is part of the Japanese cultural tradition related to Buddhism known as 'mono no aware'.

The obverse and reverse of the Japanese 100 Yen coin. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Finally the 500 yen plant features the Paulownia plant ('Kiri' in Japanese). This plant is used as the crest used by the Cabinet and Government of Japan. Its wood is used to make koto, a stringed musical instrument considered the national instrument of Japan.

500 yen coin (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Related articles

• Silver 1,000 yen coin to be issued for Shinkansen's 50th anniversary
• Why does the fifty yen coin have a hole? And other fun facts about Japanese coins
• Death By Cherry Blossom
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• Japan's trade deficit narrows on slower imports

New Updates for Blog

The main website has had a few updates and now it's time for the blog to do the same. Our current mascots Kate, Chloe and the gang are being redone by none other than Lorrainiaful!

So in the coming weeks you'll be seeing transformations such as:

into ->

so please stay tuned and look forward to these fantastic upgrades!

Smiletalk website update

I am excited to tell you avid Smiletalk users and eager learners, about Smiletalks latest features. As you know the site at the moment is still in it's infancy and with each passing month we boldly stride forward to improve it for the users. This month we have added a more social element to the website but stay tuned because even bigger and better updates are in the works. Thank you so much for your support!

Now lets take a closer look at these new features!

The Latest Features

Smiles

English: Hitch-hiker's gesture Русский: Жест автостопщика (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hey you, someone just gave you a smile! This means that they found your recording helpful and wanted to show their appreciation with a little smile. It's basically a thumbs up meaning you did a good job and just a little something to help motivate you!

This will help you decide on the content you can upload by seeing what people like. It will also help you to improve your posts by mimic the ones you made that got a lot of smiles.

Comments

We have finally created a comments feature! This means that people can now comment on your talk to tell you if it was helpful or not and to thank you for uploading. You can also comment on other users talk and maybe even ask for a specific talk! More features like this coming real soon

Plays

Now you can see how many time your talk has been played. If it is being played a lot then you know a lot of users are using it. You should feel proud that you are helping break down the language barrier!

Thank you all once again for your support and remember, by just sharing a few words you are helping billions of people by providing listening comprehensions

Related articles

• 30 Prompts

10 Culture Points to Survive in Japan

1. Keep business cards safe. If you receive a business card treat it with the utmost care and be seen to do so.
2. Be clean before you enter the public bath. Don't pee in the bath!
3. No talking in the elavator. It's really really rude.
4. Take your shoes off before entering a house. Common cutesy.
5. Never stick your chopsticks into your food so they stand vertically. It's bad luck
6. Unless you have medical reasons or are good at lying about having a condition don't refuse a drink.
7. Don't sit at the head of the table unless you are told to.
8. Do not season your food without tasting. It's an insult to the chef.
9. Don't imitate anime characters in practical speech, you'll look like a fool unless you are cosplaying.
10. Bow upon meeting someone, if you don't know for how long it's best to bow deeper and longer then to be thought of as rude.

Related articles

• Not In Japan
• Why Do Asian Nations Use Chopsticks?
• Is Japan a 'normal' country simply trying to stick out?
• Some of Japan's Best April Fools' Jokes
• Learned Lessons - Japan edition