(no subject)

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

Hello Arashi community!
I am in dire need of some help. Here is the background story first: I am a senior this year and at my school we get the opportunity for independent study for a month. So because I am an Arashi fan and they introduced me to japanese culture and inspired me to learn more and actually travel to japan. I was going to participate in a camp where I would teach English and learn about the culture but for obvious reasons, my trip was canceled. Not only am I very sad and constantly thinking and praying for the people of japan, but i am now in trouble with my independent study. My independent study is one of the things that allows me to graduate.
This is where you come in. My main focus for independent study was how do Japanese youth uphold tradition or how do they disregard it? And how does westernization distroy culture?
I am trying to find something to do in the USA or in a safe place that will still steer me in that direction. I have contacted different japanese culture centers and neither offered anything I am looking for and one didn't even have a way I could take Japanese lessons. I would really like to find a way to immerse myself in Japanese culture rather than take classes with nonjapanese people. I am really pressed for time since I was supposed to leave tomorrow for japan and I need to find an alternative by next week. So, if any of you have any ideas or suggestions, please let me know.
Thank you all for your help. I am very impressed with the power of Arashi fans and I am very grateful for the fans and ofcourse the band that brings us all together, Arashi.
Thanks,
Tessa

Comments

[trieze0713.livejournal.com]

Hello,
I came accross your note here from a friend's link and I'd like to offer some help. Would you like to converse with a Japanese people directly? My friend Kota likes to have new friends, his English is not so bad and he's also available through Skype. If you're interested I could ask for his permission to introduce you both to each other through email or facebook. Another friend, Yoshi, is more fluent in English but looks like he's a bit busy nowadays but I can always ask. Another choice is my friend Tomoko who's studying for her Master in Boston Harvard right now :) Probably a better choice for you? Let me know how I can help, will be glad to! :D

Cheers,
Tre

[arashi3723.livejournal.com]

hey. That seems kind of bad. I live in Japan, and I'm pure Japanese. I'm 16 right now, and since i used to live in CA for like 3 years, my English should be ok (better than average anyway). So if there's anything I could help you with, i'll be more than happy to. :D
Also, I'm not sure if my area has one of those cultral centers, but my area is free from earthquake for now. well east japan's safe right now including Kansai, Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu area. Which means Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka, and Okinawa are safe too. Maybe there's a center that will meet your needs in Osaka? I don't know but you could try contacting them too maybe

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

thanks! maybe we could chat sometime through email or skype or something. I definitely won't be able to travel to Japan any time soon as I already canceled my plane ticket and my parents don't want to go until everything is cleared up. But thank you!

[arashi3723.livejournal.com]

oh that really is too bad...
I have skype! also Facebook :P

[abtomat.livejournal.com]

How about interviewing a number of Japanese pple? You can get pple from diff ages and backgrounds (brought up in Japan/brought up in America). How about visiting those Japanese centers in the US and talking to a bunch of people? Older pple would have a good grasp on how westernization effects Japan. Hope this helps somewhat, good luck!

[sukinow.livejournal.com]

Hi,
I just ran across your post, I am a second generation Japanese American living in US, Chicago to be exact. I am fluent in both languages and I used to attend a Japanese School on Saturdays which had a mix of students from Japan because their parents were expats and had to come to the US or they were like me second generation and wanted to keep up with culture, language, etc. I believe they have the same type of school in New Jersey too since my mom teaches there. But it might be interesting to interview some people there and I guess you could take classes there too, although not sure, since I am not sure what level your Japanese is at? I think the one in New Jersey also offers tutoring too so that might be a better option instead of taking classes?

In any case here are the websites although you may have to call them since they are in Japanese (sorry not meaning to offend you just don't know how good you are with Japanese :))and of course to find out if this will work for what you have to do.

http://www.newjerseyjapaneseschool.org/
http://www.chicagojs.com/

[raatkerani.livejournal.com]

I don't know if your student status will let you do this, but in the university where i study, there's a program that might get you interested.
http://www.isc.kyushu-u.ac.jp/jtw/

[luv-jdramagirl5.livejournal.com]

Hey, I'm half japanese and looking for people to speak Japanese to too!If you want i'm available to talk to most of the time and always willing to make friends!Interested?? btw i live in america right now but i spent most of my life in japan. I'm just a girl who wants to help my fellow arashi fangirl!! xDD
im sorry i cant really help with the career/job part...

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

That would be great! If you would like to message me, we could exchange email or skype :D My Japanese isn't great, I really only know a few phrases... which is why I want to take classes haha

[luv-jdramagirl5.livejournal.com]

aha okay~ don't worry about not being able to speak so much! i havent been able to find people to speak japanese to so i'm probably a little rusty anyways! :)

[loverspit.livejournal.com]

Have you thought about approaching these organizations again as a volunteer, especially now with all the disaster? I'm sure there's things that you will be able to do, people are throwing fundraising events and sharing info/news.

This way it's like, you're willing to do something for them, rather than asking them if they can do something for you for free. They might be more receptive to your dilemma. You gotta give a little to get a little, right? :) Plus it could be a little extra on your resume for when you graduate, and you'll meet plenty of interesting people, Japanese or not.

You can check around universities and colleges in your area too -- you're a little younger but you're more likely to find international students there, willing to do language-exchange-type meet-ups. If there's an East Asian studies program, or even Student Unions might be able to point you in the right direction.

[loverspit.livejournal.com]

PS Also, you probably don't need to worry too much about learning the language. If your topic is about Westernization, seeking out American-landed Japanese immigrants, exchange students, and travelers is probably sufficient.

There's plenty of research done on this topic and anthropological papers written everywhere (my cousin actually studies in this field!). If you do some data collection at the library and on the internet too, something might come up, and if you present this to the organizations you've already talked to, they'll see your seriousness! :D

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

Actually, part of my project was to do a research paper on my topic before I travel to Japan. I never thought about showing that to the people I would be working with. Thanks for the idea!

[mecha-danger.livejournal.com]

Where do you live? That'd be helpful. I live in the SF Bay Area, so it's pretty easy to get access to that kind of stuff.

If this is for a credit in school, I suggest you go with a surefire method rather than an iffy pen pal or something.

- BYU offers excellent independent study courses in Japanese, but they are a bit time-consuming and the "customer service"-ish people are hard to get a hold of.
- I also suggest looking for Japanese tutoring services that are not necessarily in your area, but then inquire if lessons by Skype would be okay (invest in a webcam if you don't have one!). Tell them about your plight; I'm sure they'd be willing. I have done something similar to this, continuing study with a tutor even though I moved somewhere totally different.
- Books are good ;)
- If you're just looking for cultural study, that might be iffy on the HS credits, but internet stuff has taught me most of what I know about Japanese culture - and I've been to Japan!

Good luck!

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

I live in Colorado and there is a small Japanese store here, but not much I can do. I am definitely willing to travel.

[coolioshmo.livejournal.com]

Thank you everyone for your suggestions and ideas! I really appreciate the help. I think I am going to travel to Vancouver in Canada, as I found a Japanese language school that might be able to help me. But if anyone has any info or knows people in Vancouver that would be awesome!
Also, I don't know much Japanese at all, which is one reason I want to take classes to learn!
I will definitely see if there is a way I can volunteer to help Japan.
Thank you all again!