My first Japanese Speech - Eng Translation

I am Gokul. Today I will talk about my experiences in Japan.

Before I came to Japan I have visited America, Singapore and Malaysia many times. But Japan is completely different from all the other countries. As soon as I landed in Japan I was shocked looking at the differences.

Slowly I started understanding Japan, its people and their lifestyle. Japanese people are very helpful in nature. Our Japanese lessons have helped us a lot in our work. Thank you very much.

I have also started making an effort to be very helpful to the people around me. Vinil has not been married but he likes Japanese women a lot. I am helping Vinil san write a love letter to a Japanese women.

------------------------- Love Letter ----------------------

My lovely ____,

I saw you yesterday in the subway train. After that I forgot to get down at my station.

You are not beautiful.
I dont feel like coming and talking to you.
But I am always thinking of you.
I am afraid that something may happen.

Is this love? Think and reply to me.

Vinil
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now I have a small surprise for you. This letter is not for Vinil san. It is my letter, but not addressed to a Japanese women. It is addressed to Japan (country). Thank you very much Japan.

First time in Japan

Opposites, they say attract each other. I was wondering whether thats why I landed in Japan on the eve of Valentine's day in Japan this year. It was so cold and dull that I had a feeling I landed in Mars. Narita is not an airport in Mars but the japanese way of life is so different that it may not be too different from Mars also.

Here are some of my observations on the first few weeks of my sojourn

The Language:- Reality hits you first when you pick up a travel guide at the airport whose last page contains unpronouncable japanese words for conveying basic things. If someone doesnt know japanese he should definitely have his hands in place because most of the time he is going to have to use the sign language to convey things.

The marriage of Complexity & Simplicity:- What can you say of a language that has 3 different scripts and pictorial words(Kanji). Thousands of words, with some that can have as many as 18 strokes and still convey different things in different contexts. Complex is a simple explanation of it.

But at the same time I couldnt help but notice how close the people were to nature. Right from their tea which is made by pouring hot water over powdered tea leaves to their sushi. Even peoples names include hills, rivers., etc.

Most of the worlds latest electronic gadgets are produced here, but still I know of offices where people are not allowed to use cellphones in work area.

Swiss makes watches, but Japan manages Time:- If ever some one had problems managing his time he has to come to Japan. He will either change or perish. It is no surprise that trains and buses run on time, now that it is common in so many other places. But the seriousness of time trickles down to every individual. Even social gatherings start on time and end at the specified time. I doubt it whether children learn to read the time before they can say "Ma" (or "Ha Ha" as in Japanese)

Work Culture:- The concept of remarkable timeliness combined with their over commitment with work is probably what contributes to Japan's success in the industrialized world. I often used to wonder whether they ever thought about their families. I have seen quite a few highly placed executives working away from their families for decades.

Now that it is some time since I arrived here and I can say a few Japanese words, I seem to understand them better. But to understand Japan fully you need time and a good knowledge of Japanese (without that you wont understand anything :-) ). So grab a "learn japanese in X days" book & visit Japan. Just make sure that you are on time.

Sayonara.