My Quest for Japanese

I already passed Level 4 and 3 in the previous two consecutive years, and was determined to go further. Stepping up to Level 2 seemed too hard for me! It was like jumping several steps, because Level 2 was about three and a half time tougher not only from the number of Kanji letters but also much more complicated questions. I really had to give extra effort to prepare, so the offer at YWCA was just in time.

However, I couldn't make up my mind as to which class to take. JLPT had several sections just like TOEFL or other language proficiency tests – Moji (vocabulary), Goi (listening), Bumpo (grammar) and Kanji. I could have registered to all sections, but of course it would have costed me a fortune and I wouldn't have had time for my husband, my two small children, a bunch of activities in DWP (Indonesian Women Association) and at the church. So I was forced to choose – not an easy thing to do, apparently.

What I needed to learn most were Kanji and Vocabulary. I couldn't decide for myself at all, so my sensei-to-be advised me to take Kanji Class. He said that through comprehensive learning of Kanji, I would almost automatically absorb quite many vocabularies into my brain. So Kanji it was.

Kanji classes turned out to be a lot of fun! In his late 60s this teacher was highly experienced, one of the best one could get. Even better, apparently it was only me who signed in for Kanji class. Actually there was another guy but he canceled so I was alone, like being in a private classroom which was in fact supposed to consist of 4-5 students.

Kanji class proved to be very effective and useful. Learning to dissect hundreds of letters, understanding their meaning and usage in sentences, as well as practicing how to read and write them properly had enabled me to learn other things as well, including new vocabularies. We often had discussions about anything, from Japanese culture to politics to world peace. It was cool. But the best part was of course when those hard works really paid off! I successfully passed Level 2 with quite good score.

The following year when we finally came back to Indonesia, I was able to continue the lessons for several months in Japan Foundation, Jakarta. I did register myself for Level 1 and a family friend even brought me some exercise books from Japan to help me prepare. But with rapidly changing environment, new job and everything, it was too hard and turned out to be mission impossible! Zannen desu ga… what a pity!

Thereafter my love for Nihongo was still very much there, though the skill was not, hahaha… Even when we moved to France few years later, I managed to join Japanese class in Maison de la Culture du Japon, just two-minute walk from the Eiffel Tower, one RER station from our apartment. I also challenged myself to take JLPT again in Paris, six years after the latest one in Kobe. However this time realizing that I've lost so much from not using the language for so long, I lowered the standard to N3 which was between Level 2 and 3 in the old system. Though my eyes were hot and watery during the test from staring at pages of curly letters, I fortunately passed and it had been a most rewarding experience.

As for now, if I one day I shall suddenly find myself somewhere in Japan, I guess I will survive. Daily conversation is still manageable, I won’t get lost in the streets. However it will be much tougher to regain the art of reading and writing Kanji, those beautiful meaningful pictorial letters. That one thing will surely take a lot of time and hard work. Gambaranai to ikenai desu!