blending an assortment of thoughts and experiences for my friends, relations and kindred spirit

blending an assortment of thoughts and experiences for my friends, relations and kindred spirit
By Alison Hobbs, blending a mixture of thoughts and experiences for friends, relations and kindred spirits.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

More Japanese

Now this is interesting. Once again, I've been researching the vocabulary we'll need when dining out in Tokyo and what do I find?

fork = fooku
knife = naifu
spoon= supuun
napkin = napukin
cup = kappu
glass = gurasu, koppu
a bottle of wine = wain
koohii to miruku = coffee with milk
soup = suupu
butter = bataa
cheese = chiizu
pork = pooku
beef = biifu
steak = suteeki
juice = jyuusu
pie = pai
ice cream = aisu kuriimu
tip = chippu

Since you don't pronounce, or hardly pronounce the single "u"s, those words sound (in romaji spellings) remarkably familiar. I assume, then, that all the concepts listed above must have seemed outlandish to the Japanese until they felt obliged to accommodate English-speakers in their country. Vegetarian is listed as "begitarian." In any case, as in other parts of the world, it may be considered trendy to have anglicised one's vocabulary.

However, I mustn't let this lull me into a false sense of security. The phrases I'll need day to day are still very different from what I'm used to.

please = onegai shimasu
thank you = arigatoo gozaimasu
excuse me = sumimasen
Chikatetsu no rosenzu o kudasai.= May I have a map of the subway, please?
Nihongo wa amari joozu ja arimasen. = I don't speak Japanese very well.
Wakari masen. = I don't understand.
Eigo o hanashimasu ka? = Do you speak English?
Doozo yoroshiku onegai shimasu.= Nice to meet you.


I studied my map of Tokyo yesterday and got some ideas from it, and a sense of where our hotel is located. I love maps.

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