In this podcast I talk about how Japanese “variety shows” (バラエティ番組 – “baraeti bangumi”) are a great way to help refine your Japanese language and cultural knowledge, especially if you are not living in Japan. I recommended the show “ホンマでっか” (honma dekka) which you can see an episode of here. Also I mentioned “Youは何しに日本へ” which you can… Read More »

Self Taught Japanese

Ep 8: Watch more Japanese Variety Shows!

In this podcast I give a detailed explanation of the verb 知る (“shiru”) which means “To know” in Japanese. I talk about some of the main verb conjugations, and then give some examples which can be used in daily conversation (ex: 知るわけない, “shiru wake nai”)   Dictionary form: 知る (shiru) Negative form: 知らない (shiranai) Masu… Read More »

Ep 7: A detailed look at the Japanese verb “shiru” [知る] (to know)

In Episode 6 of the Self Taught Japanese podcast I review a great language learning app for the iPhone: Memrise It works for Japanese as well as many other foreign languages, and a great deal of the content is completely free. I also tell a brief anecdote about a recent experience regarding the expression 終了しました.… Read More »

Ep 6: A review on an awesome language-learning app

In this episode I’ll talk about a few things that I feel make learning Japanese especially difficult, and a few that make it hard. Also I give an explanation of some of the Japanese phrases I have been using in the beginning and ending of the podcasts. You can now see this podcast listed on Apple… Read More »

Ep 5: The easy and hard of learning Japanese

In this episode I talk about some of the pros and cons of using Anime to learn Japanese, and also some suggestions to use it efficiently as a learning resource. I also talk about three anime series that I recommend (technically the last is not a series, however). Kimi ni todoke Time of Eve（full review here)… Read More »

Ep 4: Pros/cons of using Anime to study Japanese (and 3 recommendations)

In this episode I talk about using Japanese podcasts as a tool for Japanese learning. I talk about their many advantages (and a few disadvantages), and also two of my favorite podcasts involving “Chin san” from back around 10 years ago when I first got into podcasts. Dogcast Bonchicast Also I give some suggestions for… Read More »

Ep 3: My favorite way to learn Japanese: (Japanese) Podcasts (and a tribute to Chin san)

In this episode I will briefly talk about a few ways I studied Japanese and important things to prioritize in your own studies (keeping motivated, fundamentals like grammar, etc.)    

Ep 2: How I learned Japanese and what to focus on in your studies

This is the first episode of a new podcast whose content will roughly mirror my blog: discussions about learning Japanese self-taught, Japanese culture, and other linguistic stuff. In this first episode, I talk about how I went to a Buddhist Temple in Portland and celebrated Shichi-go-san (七五三) with my son. The picture is of the bag… Read More »

Self Taught Japanese Podcast: Episode 1: Celebrating the traditional event shichi-go-san (七五三) in a Buddhist temple

Informal discussions about techniques for learning Japanese and Japan's culture, as well as reviews of Japanese media (manga, anime, novels, etc.). Other related topics include Japanese grammar, expressions, pronunciation, linguistics and translation.

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Self Taught Japanese

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