#8 Check as You Go

Activate Your Japanese!

What would you do
if you were Xuan?

"Today's my day off."

"Aoi-chan is showing me around
the Nagatoro area of Saitama."

Maybe I was too early.

Aoi-chan!

Sorry I'm late.

That dress...?

What's wrong?

I didn't think you'd be wearing
something like that.

- Is it weird?
- No!

You just look different.

I look weird, don't I?

Oh no...

- I'll go home and change.
- Wait!

You look fine.

- But...
- Really!

I was just surprised. That's all!

It's cute.

Very cute.

Really?

Phew!

Then this'll do.

I wanted to come to Nagatoro.

Why?

It's in one of my favorite animes.

Really? What's it called?

"Nekodare: The Cat We Saw That Day."

"Nekodare" for short.
Do you know it?

I think so.

Is your outfit from that?

Yes!

It's the dress Mirai-chan wears
in the anime.

So you're cosplaying!

Correct!

Then you probably want to see
the places that appear in the anime.

Yeah...

But you wouldn't be interested,
would you?

How about this?

You can choose where to go first,
and then I'll choose later.

Are you sure?

Okay, that's decided!

Where should we...?

Xuan...?

What's that?

It's where Mirai-chan meets
Taro the cat for the first time.

You really know everything
about the anime.

See that?

What?

Is this in the anime too?

It's in the anime's title sequence.

"Mirai-chan prays like this too."

"That's when I remembered."

"What we saw that day wasn't a cat.
It was a dog."

You're all smiles today.

Do you think so?

That's because I'm with you.

So what do you like about
Japanese anime?

What do I like?

"There's so much I like,
it's hard to explain."

The anime...

Anime characters all do their best,
and that's great.

And anime characters are...

Anime characters are all really great.

Okay.

All right.

I see...

"It's so difficult."

"I wish I could say it better."

That hurt.

You look miserable all of a sudden.

What happened?

I was hoping you'd show up.

You were?

How can I improve my Japanese quickly?

You're asking for the impossible.

I know, but...

I couldn't tell Aoi-chan
how much I love anime.

You'd like to?

Then try once more.

What if I mess it up again?

Just ask her,
"Did you understand what I said?"

What if she says she doesn't?

Try explaining in a different way.

That sounds hard.

Practice makes perfect.

So... Take two!

And action!

So what do you like about
Japanese anime?

"Let's do this!"

Um...

It's cute.

It's fun.

And it's cool.

It's a world I'd like to be a part of.

It just feels right.

Uh-huh...

Okay.

Aoi-chan...

Did you understand what I said?

To be honest, not really.

"Okay, I'll try again."

Well...

The characters in anime...

They do their best, and
that makes me want to do my best.

They make me feel I can do things
that I've never done before.

Aoi-chan,
did you understand what I said?

So you like anime shows
because the characters are inspiring and they encourage you
to take on new challenges?

Exactly! You're so good at Japanese.

Well, obviously.

Oh, yeah. Sorry.

And it's all thanks to anime
that we met each other.

Yes.

Maybe I should watch anime too.

Then there's one I recommend!

"I still struggle with difficult topics."

"But then I'll ask the other person
if they understand what I'm saying."

"And I'll keep trying.
That's the important thing, right?"

"Today's Strategy!"

Xuan's love for anime is quite intense.

You try your best to express your thoughts, but you're not sure
if you're making yourself clear.

What will you do if that happens?

Let's look at the strategy Xuan used.

Well...

The characters in anime...

They do their best, and
that makes me want to do my best.

They make me feel I can do things
that I've never done before.

Aoi-chan,
did you understand what I said?

You mean they encourage you
to take on new challenges?

Ask the other person
if they understand what you're saying.

When you're not sure,
you can just ask, "Did you understand what I said?"
like Xuan did.

If they understood what you said, great!

If not, just try again.
Use different words or add more information.

Goodbye for now.

Meet senpai from all over Japan, Tsutsu Uraura!

Let's hear about their lives.

Today's senpai is Shovon Majumder from Bangladesh.

He works at an IT company in Nagano City.

He helps to create online shops for local businesses, using a system that handles everything from order to shipment.

Shovon joined this company two years ago.

He's a systems engineer.

He's developing software to be used in these smart glasses.

He's doing so with coworkers.

Shovon, try going outside.

OK.

It's still snowing.

The glasses and software allow instructions to be given remotely.

The glasses can also record video, and show products at stores as well as tourism information.

The company's president has high hopes for the future of this tech.

When starting a project like this,
diversity is key.

People who were raised in
different cultures bring new ideas.

I hope they'll take center stage.

As a child, Shovon loved anime and games.

He dreamed of going to Japan.

He studied computer engineering at university.

And he studied IT in a program held by a Japanese public agency, JICA.

He learned Japanese for three months and received a visa, then began working at this company.

Shovon lives in Nagano City.

It's a city full of tourist attractions.

One of them is Zenkoji, a temple founded in the seventh century.

It's close to Shovon's workplace.

He comes here to take a break and clear his head.

This is a great place.

I want to capture and share
this view using VR.

Shovon loves this local specialty: soba noodles.

He learned to use chopsticks after arriving in Japan.

I love this soba.
The wasabi is delicious.

It comes with tempura using seasonal vegetables and pickles.

It's delicious, of course.

Shovon often studies Japanese here.

He chats with the chef and customers at this small restaurant.

"Atarime."

Dried squid.

- "Atarame?"
- "Atarime."

Making a lot of mistakes
helps me to learn.

Everyone helps correct you,
and you can remember that way.

Here's Shovon's favorite word.

Here it is: dawn.

The time just before daybreak.

It's a moment when both
light and dark co-exist.

I'm at dawn right now, heading
toward the light. Doing new things.

Every night has a dawn. I want to
shine, so I like this word.

From Japan, Shovon hopes to use tech to change lives everywhere.

Good luck, Shovon!