Private Japanese Lessons × Asao Language School

Hi everyone,

How are you?
This is Masa.
How's your summer holiday going?

Thank you so much for joining us for our August event, a trip to the city of Kawagoe yesterday! Hope you all enjoyed it :)

As always, we had a great trip with fantastic company, though the weather condition was quite challenging. The outside temperature actually went up to 39 degrees in Saitama!

The clips of the day will be posted later on our official Facebook page :)
https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

And, here is the itinerary we had.

11:00 AM – Meet at the station, introduce each other and divided into 2 groups (one with me and the other with Aiko sensei)
12:00 AM – Visit Kumano Shrine https://www.kawagoekumano.jp
12:30 PM – Explore the main street and have lunch at Fukuya https://tabelog.com/en/saitama/A1103/A110303/11010480/
3:00 PM – Visit Hikawa Shrine https://www.kawagoehikawa.jp
4:30 PM – Visit Dagashi Yokochou https://koedo.or.jp/spot_003/
5:00 PM – Rice cracker workshop https://www.juunintoiro.com/
6:00 PM – Finish the event on the main street

If you have already visited all the main touristy spots in Tokyo, a day trip to Kawagoe can be a great alternative choice. There are lots of restaurants, bars, cafes and souvenir shops on and off the main street. But, they are full of visitors. To avoid queuing, having lunch away from the main street is recommended :)

Also, there are lots of vending machines around but you will find no convenience stores once you leave the train station so please be careful. You want to make sure to stay hydrated. I enjoyed a couple of craft beers on the street and ended up having a cramp because of dehydration. Please be easy on them. There is also a spot where you can sit and rest. It is open to the public so please use the space wisely and do not end up like me! https://www.city.kawagoe.saitama.jp/welcome/kankobenrijoho/kanko32021.html

If you are planning to visit Kawagoe yourself and have questions, please let me know. I will be delighted to help :)

Stay tuned for the September event!

See you then!

Masa

︎Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

Discord:
https://discord.gg/t6NkjmqUE7

YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/@asaolanguage

Hi everyone,
How are you?
This is Masa.
How's studying going?
Are you getting ready for fun in summer?

I've got a couple of updates to share with you today :)

1.
Our next monthly event is coming up on Sunday 11 August.
We will be having a tour in Kawagoe https://koedo.or.jp/
Yuka sensei will shortly be making an announcement on this :)
It will be from 11:00 to 15:00. You will be joining a group of learners and teachers and together visiting the local shrines, craft shops, eating and drinking on the main street :)
Let's have fun together!

2.
Recently, we have been in touch with World Unite https://www.world-unite.de/en.html for the event organisation. They are a Germany based company that offer everybody working holiday and volunteering experience in Japan.

My friend Ryo Takasugi san from https://www.takasugi-atelier.com/ and I are now talking to them to see if we can together establish opportunities for our community members to have short term paid work experience (accommodation provided) in Mie Prefecture.

You can work in tea production, craft beer brewery, souvenir retailers, culinary, catering, design, accommodation and hospitality and so on that Ryo san runs.

If there is a type of work experience you are interested to have, please do let me know at asaolanguage@gmail.com, we will love to look into your idea :)

3.
I have started to talk about (Grammatical) Aspect of Japanese language on TikTok.
https://www.tiktok.com/@asaolanguageschool

It is one of the key ideas to understand in order to structure the sentences that express exactly what you mean. It relates to the fases of an action, state and event and how they extend over time.
In Japanese, there are 6 of them and I am going through them one by one :)

1. 直前 - Prospective
2. 開始 - Inceptive
3. 継続 - Continuous
4. 進行 - Progressive and Habitual
5. 終了 - Terminative
6. 結果 - Perfect

It is food for thought. When you have time, please discuss them with your teacher in the lessons.

4.
The Photo is from Takashi Oonishi sensei and here is his introduction :)

https://www.instagram.com/p/ClGyJSOSsea/?next=%2F&img_index=1

He has actively been teaching with us both in and out of our Discord community. He used to work in Journalism for a long time so he is familiar with a variety of topics and can discuss them with you in depth. He is also an expert in Academic Writing and Business Japanese, as well as JLPT Preparation and Conversation Lessons. If you come across his name in Second Craic, please say hello to him!

That's it for today :)

(Our sincere apologies for the trouble happened recently in our JLPT Mock Exam system. The defaults have been fixed now and the system is back normal.)

引き続き宜しくお願い致します。

Masa

Discord:
https://discord.gg/t6NkjmqUE7

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

Hi everyone,

How are you?
This is Masa.
How's everything going?

Our July event took place last Sunday.
We had a tough but fun walk through the city of Yokohama :)

The weather was really really intense that day but with a great company led by the staff of World Unite we managed to cover the whole journey on foot. A big thank you goes to everybody who participated.

For those who missed it, here is the itinerary of the day. 

11:00 Meet up at America Yama Park (Small Garden)
11:10 Ice Break
11:45 Visit Yokohama Kuan Ti Miao (Kanteibyo) - Emperor Guan's Shrine in Yokohama Chinatown
12:00 - 13:30 Have lunch in China Town
14:30 - 15:30 Visit Cup Noodles Museum Yokohama
15:30 - 16:30 Visit Yokohama Cosmo World
16:30 ‐ 18:30 Have drinks and relax

To see the clips of the day and to know about our future events, please follow our official Facebook page that is usually the most updated :)

https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

For August, we are probably going to visit Kawagoe on Sunday 11 August. If you are interested in joining us, please let us know!

My TikTok project is making progress. Since the beginning of July, I have been live streaming everyday, going though JLPT N4 and N3 quizzes. If you are a TikTok user, please drop by at https://www.tiktok.com/@asaolanguageschool
Your questions, requests, comments and suggestions are always welcome and I will be delighted to respond to them all.

Looking forward to seeing you in person in the next event or on TikTok!

Stay tuned!

Masa

Discord:
https://discord.gg/t6NkjmqUE7

Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/japaneselessons

Hi everyone!

How are you?
This is Masa.
How's your studying going?

A big otsukaresamadeshita goes to those who sat the JLPT last week :)
How did it go?

Just so that you know, the listening part turns out to be and expected to be the most challenging part for everybody regardless of their level.

Even if you think that you did not perform as well as you had expected, do not feel stressed about it.

Please keep working on the vocabulary and grammar in your lessons, which will ultimately help you catch up on your listening skill. It is expected to improve more slowly than other skills.

Again, really really otsukaresamadeshita :)
For now, let's enjoy the summer!

I have got some information to share with you today.

1. I participated in the Japanese Teacher Training programme run by Aiko sensei the other day. The topic of the month was Business Japanese.

She recommended the following textbooks so if anybody is interested, please have a look :)

https://www.amazon.co.jp/s?k=978-4883197705&i=stripbooks&camp=247&creative=1211&linkCode=ur2&linkId=f17471b925a45b9d0dd473c4982f5161&tag=asao09b-22

https://www.amazon.co.jp/s?k=978-4883198467&i=stripbooks&camp=247&creative=1211&linkCode=ur2&linkId=b5983bc420b26bb3308545a5939a88bb&tag=asao09b-22

https://www.amazon.co.jp/s?k=978-4883195954&i=stripbooks&camp=247&creative=1211&linkCode=ur2&linkId=58d08af34621b97a89226e6e6b0227bd&tag=asao09b-22

2. Our July event is coming up next Sunday, the 21st :) We are taking a walk in the city of Yokohama in groups. Yuka sensei has already made an announcement for it.

https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

If you are interested, please sign up. You can take your family members and friends with you if you want. Taito sensei and Akiko sensei and I will be joining as well. It is going to be fun!

3. We came across this website that explains about the idea of the Certificate Of Eligibility and types of Visas that your employer or school can potentially apply for for you. If you are considering moving to Japan, it might be worth having a look.

https://visaguide.world/asia/japan-visa/certificate-of-eligibility/

4. The post is from Tomoko Kobayashi sensei introducing herself.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CkgBjC_vE2Y/

She is an excellent teacher with a great personality and plenty of teaching experience :) She might appear less active on Discord but she is actively teaching outside. She is capable of teaching a variety of types of lessons such as grammar, conversation and JLPT preparation lessons. She is available both online and in person. If you are interested in trying her lesson, please let Yuka sensei or I know. If you come across her name in the second Craic, please say hello to her!

That's it for today.

引き続き宜しくお願い致します

Masa

Discord:
https://discord.gg/t6NkjmqUE7

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/asaolanguage

Hi everyone,

How are you?

This is Masa :)

How's everything going?

1, thank you all so much for joining us in the June event, Yuuzenn Dyeing workshop last week. It was fun, wasn't it?

Big thanks also go to Ms Megumi Taguchi from World Unite who planned and set up the event for us :) She says she runs 4 indoor activities at their event space we visited and 1 outdoor activity visiting a touristy location in the Kanto region every month and welcomes Asao group to those anytime. Let's pick and try one next month also!

She also says that World Unite organises Working Holiday visas for those who wish to stay and work in Japan. They also offer shared houses to their participants. For details, please have a look at

https://www.world-unite.de/en/working-holiday/japan/working-holiday-in-tokyo.html

I am in touch with them regularly now, so if you have questions about their services, you can let me know as well. I will be happy to help clarify them for you :)

2, how are you getting on with your JLPT preparation?

It's not much but I have been making posts on TikTok trying to contribute to your study by explaining the grammars in English. It's neither quality videos nor my best performances ever, but I am hoping that they can clarify some of your doubts.

https://www.tiktok.com/@asaolanguageschool

I am aware that some of you are taking it for your personal challenge while others are for their job career and possibly attaining a Permanent Resident visa. I am not sure if you are familiar with this. But, if you are planning to apply for it with less than 10 years of stay in Japan, you will need to rely on the point system. I have come across a website that explains the system relatively clearly.

https://dsg.or.jp/column/permanent/4171/

Please have a look at it and if you have questions, please let me know :) I will be happy to support you to figure it out :)

3, Just so that you know that, if you are a pet owner and need support, two of my very close friends who are vets owning and running animal clinics in Tokyo can help you.

https://www.american-ah.com/

https://fujimidai-ac.com/

They will be delighted to help you with examinations and medical treatments as well as step by step instructions while relocating to and leaving Japan. I am in touch with them regularly so don't hesitate to let me know :)

4. The photo is from Yukiko Watanabe sensei and here is her introduction.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjpUFAQLX4R/?img_index=1

She is actively teaching both in and out of our Discord community :) She has been working with us for a few years now. With her warm personality and expertise, everyone's feedback on her lessons has been very positive. If you come across her name on Discord, please say hello to her or let me or Yuka sensei know if want to try her lesson. She is a popular and well skilled teacher welcoming learners of a variety of levels and study purposes such as conversation, general, JLPT preparation.

That's it for today!

Thank you always for supporting our community and wish you the best of luck with the exam next week!

Masa