Comments on: Lower Intermediate Lesson S5 #6 - If You’re Smart, You’ll Follow My Japanese Advice!

by: Spidey

Sun, 24 Oct 2010 00:18:02 +0000

I think the Japanese staff at Japanese Pod101 are great, but you sometimes miss replying to questions and I’m sure it’s because you are very busy. For example, the one from r29123 and myself in the above posts.

Could you add a check off box to the comment section? This would help you to not over look members who are waiting for replies.

Thanks you.

by: Susan

Sat, 23 Oct 2010 23:46:08 +0000

I’m wondering where I can find more information explaining the expression:

issho o bo ni furu

introduced in this lesson

by: Naomi

Mon, 09 Aug 2010 01:40:39 +0000

Sylvie-san
も　is part of ても “even if”.
Even if you tell him something in a roundabout way, he wouldn’t get it.
You can use “if” conditional, たら or と.
遠まわしにいったら、きづかない。or 遠まわしに言うと、気づかない

by: Sylvie

Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:32:20 +0000

質問がある
In the sentence “彼は、鈍いので、遠まわしに言っても気づかない”, what does the “mo” stand for?
Could you also say 彼は、鈍いので、遠まわしに言うことに気づかない”?

by: Naomi

Wed, 26 May 2010 10:24:45 +0000

Tess-san
Thank you for putting a great question!
-kke is a colloquial sentence-ending particle and this indicates question.
It’s used to make a question or confirm an information the speaker’s already known.
It “usually” follows the informal speech but んだ is often inserted before っけ.
ex)
明日テストがあるっけ？　Do we have a test tomorrow?
明日テストがあるんだっけ？

I hope this helps.

by: Tess

Wed, 26 May 2010 07:06:14 +0000

What is the grammar and conjugation behind the “kke” at the end of the sentence “あれ、康平。お前、今日車で来たんじゃなかったっけ？” “Are, Kōhei. O-mae, kyō kuruma de kita n janakatta kke?”

by: Saimon

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 09:23:10 +0000

Naomiさん
どうもありがとうございます

by: Naomi

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 08:03:04 +0000

Saimon-san
“行かなければ　「なら」ない” 「なら」ですね？
ちがいます。No, it’s not.

このレッスンの「なら」は If conditional ですよね。
This lesson’s “nara” basically means “if”, right?
As for nara in naranai is from the verb なる “to become” “to be completed”
So naranai literally means “It won’t become” or “It won’t be perfect”

However the 「ば」 as in いかなけれ「ば」ならない, is the if conditional.
So -na kere ba naranai literally means “If something hasn’t done, it won’t be perfect”. In natural English it means “have to do something”

by: Saimon

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:54:41 +0000

”ごの。。”では　ない　”この。。。”でした　（＾＾i）
すみません

by: Saimon

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:50:45 +0000

ごのなら　と　行かなければならないん (I have to go)　の　なら　は　同じ　ですか？
ありがとうございます

by: Naomi

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:42:47 +0000

Bob1-san
さすが、日本政府・・・。　

by: Bob1

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 01:58:43 +0000

Naomi,

You are shrewd, but the Japanese bureaucracy is shrewder (or at least one step ahead of you)

My (Japanese) wife was able to exchange her US driver’s license only because she had been living
overseas for more than 10 years. As for you scheme, 残念ですね。

by: Naomi

Fri, 26 Mar 2010 01:26:45 +0000

Bob1-san
じゃ、アメリカで、運転免許(driver’s license)をとって、日本の運転免許に書き換えた（exchange, renew）方が、安くていいですね～！！
It costs me good 300.000 yen to get a driver’s license in Japan.(Including the driver’s school fee).

by: Bob1

Thu, 25 Mar 2010 06:53:36 +0000

Here’s a JAF url on switching an overseas driver’s license to a Japanese driver’s license. It
was just posted March 1.

http://www.jaf.or.jp/e/switch.htm

by: Bob1

Wed, 24 Mar 2010 10:34:46 +0000

Jessi,

You mentioned during the lesson conversation that you had/have a driver’s license in the US, but none in Japan. When I arrived in Japan many many moons ago, I had a Missouri driver’s license as well as an international driver’s license that had required nothing but a small bit of paperwork and low fee to the AAA. With these two licenses, I was able to exchange my Missouri driver’s license for a Japanese driver’s license (though this required a bit a paperwork and a translation of my driver’s license carried out by a third party. I can’t remember whether there was any limitation on how long after arriving in Japan I could exchange licenses in this way, but if your US driver’s license is still valid, you might try looking into this.