#2 The Courage to Ask

What would you do
if you were Xuan?

Today is my first day on the job.

Everyone's staring at me.
This is nerve-racking.

Today, we have a new member
joining our crew.

Xuan-san...

Yes, of course...

My name is Nguyen Mai Xuan.

I'm from Vietnam.

Please call me Xuan.

I look forward to working with you.

Xuan...

I'm sure there'll be times when
you don't know what to do.

But just ask anyone here, all right?

Okay.

Well, let's have a good day today.

Let's get going!

Why isn't anyone joining in?

Hey... Wait!

Good luck.

Thanks. I'll do my best.

Okay then. This is it.

This is Sumire-san.
She'll be showing you what to do.

Nice to meet you.

Hona ikoka.

Huh...?

"Hona ikoka"?

Sumire-san has a bit of a
Kansai dialect.

Okay...

She just meant to say, "Let's go."

Enough of that.
We haven't got all day.

Here's what she said.

We haven't got time, and you need to
hurry or it'll be evening.

No need to translate everything.

Sorry about that.

Let's get a move on then.

Ask for repetition in an efficient manner.

Hold on...

She might seem scary at first, but you'll get used to her.

Go!

Okay.

Well, well...

I didn't think Ota-san would put
Sumire-san in charge of her.

Sumire-san can be brutal.

And there's her Kansai dialect
to deal with.

Let's hope she doesn't quit right away.

Will she be able to overcome
the huge obstacle before her?

This is going to be fun to watch!

Definitely.

Honestly, you two!

- Get to work!
- Yes, ma'am.

And you!

Don't walk around in a bathrobe!

Sorry, ma'am.

For heaven’s sake...

These are the blankets,
sheets and pillowcases.

Over here, the bath towels
and face towels.

I'll show you how to fold them later.

Huh...?

Well... that's it.

I’m sorry.

Next is cleaning the guest rooms.

Room 502 will be checking in at 12:00,
so let's clean that first.

Huh...?

What...?

Nothing. I'm sorry.

She's gone.

What do I do now?

I got that she said "Room 502."

But she said something about 12:00...

What did she say?

Seems like you need
some help-yansu.

You again!

Who are you exactly?

Just someone who can't stand by
and watch a damsel in distress.

A passing stranger,
ready to offer support-yansu.

Really?

You're my key chain.

Never mind that.

Do you know what to do?

Oh yes...

I heard her say "Room 502"
and "at 12:00," but...

If you didn't understand,
you should've asked her.

But she'd get angry if I asked
again and again.

She'd get angrier if you didn't do
what she asked you to do.

I suppose so, but...

Have a look at this.

Do you have a minute?

Sure.

We got a call from Room 307.
They want another pillow.

Can I take one to them?

There's heaps of them stocked in
the 3rd-floor linen room.

I'm sorry.

What did you say after "sutokku ga"?

I said there's...

...a large stock of them.

Okay, I understand now.

I see.

Did you notice?

Monica asked Sumire-san,
"What did you say after 'sutokku ga'?"

She did.

She didn't say "Huh?"

She used the words she understood.

Am I right?

You need to find the answers yourself.

I can only support you from
behind the scenes-yansu.

Thank you, Yansu.

Why are you calling me Yansu?

Anyway, now that you understand,
why not try again-yansu?

Again?

I'll show you how to fold them later.

This happened a few minutes ago.

Next is cleaning the guest rooms.

Room 502 will be checking in at 12:00,
so let's clean that first.

Please wait!

I'm sorry.

Room 502...
What did you say after "12-ji ni"?

I said "chekku in."

Oh, they're checking in at 12:00!

That's why we need to clean it first.

Clean it first!

Chop-chop. Quickly.

"Chop-chop. Quickly."

Don't take that down.

Thank you for teaching me.

Don't bow down so low.

You'll bash your head on the floor.

Now, chop-chop.

Okay, chop-chop.

- Go on then.
- Yes.

If you can't hear what was said,
don't be afraid to ask.

Maybe I've learned something today.

What do you think, Yansu?

"Today's Strategy!"

There are times when you can't catch
what the other person said.

What will you do if that happens?

If it's instructions about work,
doing nothing about it may get you in trouble.

Let's look at the strategy Xuan used.

Room 502 will be checking in at 12:00,
so let's clean that first.

I'm sorry.

Room 502...
What did you say after "12-ji ni"?

I said "chekku in."

Ask for repetition
in an efficient manner.

"Room 502...
What did you say after '12-ji ni'?"

She repeated what she picked up and asked about the part
she could not catch.

If you do this,
you can clearly convey what you missed.

You can say,
"Could you say that again?"

but it would also be nice to
be able to ask efficiently like Xuan.

Goodbye for now.

Meet senpai from all over Japan, Tsutsu Uraura!

Let's hear about their lives.

Today's senpai is Zeba Ahmed, from the US.

She lives in the rice-growing town of Marumori in Miyagi.

Sairi Yashiki is a popular spot.

It's the former residence of a prosperous merchant family.

Zeba shows visitors around.

I drew this sign.

The kanji were hard.
I got help from my coworkers.

They gave me advice on
how to write it. Very helpful.

Zeba works for a company that promotes the local area.

She uses social media to share information about Sairi Yashiki.

The goal is to bring in revenue for the area through sales and tourism.

Zeba also helps plan events.

Recently, we did a Halloween event.

We brought out lanterns
and had people dress up.

They played a game and hunted for
stamps. It got a good reaction.

She's very interested in Marumori.

She does research and knows even
more about some things than we do.

She shares that information with
our guests.

Zeba lives and works in Marumori.

On her days off, she gears up to do one thing in particular.

I'm in Japan, so I want to talk
with Japanese people.

She reached out to a group of people who farm for fun.

Now, they farm together.

This is fun!

After they finish, they make a pizza with their harvest.

Let's eat!

I think Zeba studies hard.

She's really one of us.

There's one word that's helped Zeba to learn Japanese.

What's "inkyo?"

What's "ichiya-zuke?"

She uses "nani" to ask when she doesn't understand.

The other person explains it to me.

It becomes a memory, which helps me
to remember the meaning.

Here's Zeba's favorite word.

A sense of purpose.

It's when you have a goal in mind,
and you're focused on achieving it.

Zeba is getting ready for an event involving kaki, or persimmons.

A Marumori specialty.

She's been watching the persimmons grow, and even trimming branches.

She's spent a year in preparation.

Zeba loves hoshigaki.

Some are juicy and soft.
Some are hard and chewy.

I think they're all delicious.

She had the idea for participants to try making hoshigaki.

Some participants are from abroad.

Zeba uses both English and Japanese to provide instructions.

It's very interesting.

It was fun.

I want people who come to Marumori
to have a one-of-a-kind experience.

Zeba, keep making Marumori great!