Hi Everybody, I'll be visiting Japan at the end of the year and I want to use as much japanese as I can while I'm there. I'm thinking of being able to read menus without asking for the english version, ordering food in japanese, navigating the train system without reading english, and basically just recognizing/using the most amount of japanese as possible while I'm there.

To this end, I'm compiling a vocabulary and useful phrases list(here) that I'll anki the crap out of until I get there. Here's what I'm thinking, but please let me know if I'm missing anything that might be useful. Here's what I have in mind:

Kanjified place names I'll probably go: yokohama, tokyo, kanagawa, hakone, kamakura...
Menu items: names of sushi fish, types of ramen noodles, izayaya items...
Densha jargon: kaisoku, nobori, yamanote line...

Any other suggestions?
Thanks!

-Common directions: types of stores and buildings, road structures, movements, etc; you probably know most of these by now, but think of how you might describe directions to your house or a particular store and figure out how you'd describe it in Japanese.

-Questions: I know it sounds basic, but I recently noticed how poor my grasp of questioning is; can't think of specifics though; again, try to come up with questions and figure out what you don't have a good grasp on from there.

-Money: again, basic, but it can be hard to catch numbers at real-life speeds... not to mention saying them at real-life speed; plus all the various money related vocabulary.

That's all I can really think of... I'm not a very social person, I figure out my own way, and I only go where I've planned to: not very conducive to learning these kinds of things (not to mention that my trip to Japan is still a couple years off).

Weather. Learn the heck out of weather words since, it's the most common topic for small talk.

Why don't you buy a phrase book from Berlitz or Lonely Planet and then anki input the phrases they've put together? It seems like they've done most of the work of pulling together the survival Japanese that you'll need.

Thanks guys. Lots of good ideas here.

sholum Wrote:That's all I can really think of... I'm not a very social person, I figure out my own way, and I only go where I've planned to: not very conducive to learning these kinds of things (not to mention that my trip to Japan is still a couple years off).

Oh yeah I'm totally that way too. I'm not hoping to get into long conversations and ask a lot of questions while I'm there. Just taking an opportunity to passively intake as much signage and public service announcements as possible. I might go so far as ordering food in japanese because all I need to know is the name of what I want to eat.

Btw, I found a good website with a lot of this practical stuff. Kind of like a travel phrasebook as has been suggested.

Get used to hearing store employee 尊敬語. I remember how cool I was spending all day talking in Japanese before I went to Japan, and then I go to Japan, and the giy behind the counter at McDonalds is using these 決まり文句 that I simply never heard, and I realized I was lost, and sucked at Japanese. In McDonalds. Ordering from the 百円 menu

It's funny because they cannot break into plain language to help you. But the person next to you in line can, so get used to verifying with some stranger what the dud behind the counter at McDonald's means when he says 召し上がり.

Also, have fun. It's awesome that you get to go!

Just being there (with the right attitude) will make you realize this has all been worth it, and you will come back massively acceleratedly advanced, and super motivated.

Have you got some online talk partners who can show you around for part of your trip? (If not, get some. It's cool to have someone drop into one's life for a little bit. Lifelong friendships start with such minor beginnings.)

Surprisingly available are the mid forties moms who would like a special moment and memory to carry around long after you go back home. I found looking eager and open on the train got me free tours of real homes and free meals. Not planned at all. It was cool to just go shopping for the daily dinner stuff with some one who similarly thought it was cool that a simple trip to the market became this special memory.

Found this site. I didn't see anything on your list about hotels or using a taxi so I thought these might help. They are basic though
http://nihongoichiban.com/2011/06/20/a-c...-japanese/

First, it's 全然おｋ to make a bunch of mistakes. Been there, done that. Humans make mistakes. It's what we do. So don't stress too much about getting it perfect.

Rather than Anki-ing the hell out of it, go find a human to practice with if you can. Build those muscle memories, and train yourself to say the right set phrases with someone who can tell you immediately when you screw up.

When you're in a conversation, remember to say, "はい、はい," "ええ、ええ," or "うん、うん," at close intervals to avoid creeping the hell out of your Japanese counterpart. You're not agreeing, you're just acknowledging that you've safely understood what they've said. Pick one according to politeness level. Don't say "うん、うん," to your boss.

Other conversational interjections: if something bad happened, 大変ですね, or 残念ですね. If something good happened, いいですね, or if a bad situation was prevented, よかったですね. Or a simple そうですね for variety. If it's surprising, そうですか？ It's really the same as having a conversation in polite English-- if your friend is talking to you, and stuff happened to them, you might say something as an indicator of surprise or sympathy. This is the same deal. Pick words accordingly, or just はい、はい if you're not sure.

Find a good filler word for saying nothing when you're struggling to find a word to say in conversation. "あの、えっと、んとね、そうですね、まぁー" words like that sprinkled here and there (but not too much) can help you in a "Oh crap, what was that word? I need to fill this awkward silence for 2-3 seconds while I remember it!" kind of way.

んですが is really useful. 予約したいんですが… "I'd like to make a reservation (so please help me!)" 予約がありますが… or 予約があるの(ん)ですが… "I've got a reservation, but (I need help with getting my room, front desk person, so can you help me?)" I'll admit I'm a little fuzzy on the grammar details on these two. Might want to look them up. But those save my butt a lot, and nobody seems to throw things at me, so good enough for me.

A few more:

Generally, "お願いします、すみません、__をください" are your best buds. They will get you surprisingly far. すみません is something you can yell in a restaurant to get a waiter's attention. This is important, because once you order, they're usually done with you after you get your food. If you want more, すみません!

ちょっとよろしいでしょうか？ Is now a good time (to deal with the problem I'm going to ask you for help with)? (Polite) This is great in デパート, デパチカ, anywhere you need to bother a salesperson or guide to explain stuff to you.

お時間ありますか？ Do you have time (to deal with me?)

わざわざすみません。 Thanks for going to all the trouble to help me out.

For taxis, "___までお願いします。" <--- This saved my butt a lot too, especially when I was in a hurry.

Two books:

The Ultimate Japanese Phrasebook (ISBN: 978-4-7700-3100-6) $25US. The scope is a little overbroad IMO, it goes from getting off the plane to getting hitched to your kids going to college. I'd think you would go take some classes at *some* point inbetween, but who am I to judge? At any rate, check it out in a library first.

The Original Point and Speak Phrasebook 9 Japanese Food (ISBN: 978-4-7958-3873-4) 1500 yen. All about food, table manners, tea, regional specialties, etc., in EN and JP. You can just point at stuff if you're totally lost. Damn book makes me hungry.

Some great solid advice here. I've been to Japan several times and it's always been like @kapalama wrote - What I heard on the street or in restaurants didn't match up with what I was learning in classes and self study. I'm convinced I could finish core 10k and still not be prepared for ordering a burger at mcdonalds lol. When I started making my list I was surprised how much of it made me think "now this is the Japanese they speak in Japan."

Anyway, I'm adding everything you all wrote to my list and it's giving me ideas of things to look up. Thanks again!