My Japanese Learning Journey: A Story of Pause & Rebirth 🇯🇵📚
Let me tell you a story about my on-again, off-again relationship with Japanese.
It started during my Bachelor’s degree. I had classes for about 3 hours a week for two years. Despite that, I didn’t learn as much as I’d hoped. I tried to pass the JLPT N4 after those two years... and I failed.
In my Master’s, I took classes aimed at N4-N3. Unfortunately, they didn’t work for me. I was juggling two Master’s degrees at the time, and my focus was everywhere but Japanese. There were too many tasks, and my brain just couldn’t handle the confusing grammar points.
So, I stopped. I had to switch to learning Chinese for my upcoming studies in China. For years, Japanese faded into the background.
Then, at the beginning of 2024, I went to Japan for the first time. And something clicked.
I realized I still remembered so many words. And kanji? Suddenly, they weren’t a terrifying wall anymore. Thank you, Chinese language, for helping me see the meaning behind the characters.
It felt like a waste to leave that knowledge untouched. I decided to come back—to really come back to learning Japanese. I want to travel to Japan more, maybe even live there one day.
Japan gave me the warmest feeling. I fell in love with the attention to detail, the deep appreciation for art and stationery (yes, I’m obsessed too 😄), the architecture, and the culture. My love for Japanese was reborn.
So, where am I now?
I’m currently refreshing all the N5-N4 basics while also trying to grasp more advanced kanji. My routine includes reading NHK Easy Japanese news, checking Japanese Instagram posts, and watching YouTube videos. Also JLPT materials (including TRY! Series).
I’m excited to share this journey with you all. I’ll be showing you the materials I use to study soon!
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