Japan (Lonely Planet, 11th Edition) - Chris Rowthorn [663]
Reiki claims to heal by charging this same life force with positive energy, thus allowing the ki to flow in a natural, healthy manner. In a standard treatment, reiki energy flows from the practitioner’s hands into the client. The practitioner places their hands on or near the clients’ body in a series of positions that are held for three to 10 minutes. People become practitioners after receiving an ‘attunement’ from a reiki master.
If you do decide to have any traditional medical treatments make sure you tell your practitioner whether or not you are taking any Western medicines.
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Language
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CONTENTS
Grammar
Written Japanese
Romanisation
Language books
Pronunciation
Accommodation
Conversation & Essentials
Directions
Health
Emergencies
Language Difficulties
Numbers
Question Words
Shopping & Services
Time & Days
Transport
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Japanese is the language spoken across all of Japan. While the standard language, called hyōjungo, is understood by almost all Japanese, many people speak strong local dialects (known as ben, as in the famous dialect of Kansai, Kansai-ben). These dialects, particularly in rural areas, can be quite difficult to understand, even for Japanese from other parts of the country. Luckily, you can always get your point across in hyōjungo.
In this language guide you’ll find a selection of useful Japanese words and phrases. For information on food and dining, including words and phrases that will help in deciphering menus and ordering food in Japanese, Click here. For information on language courses available in Japan, Click here.
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TRYING ENGLISH IN JAPAN
Visitors to Japan should be warned that many Japanese do not speak or understand much English. Although English is a required subject in both junior high school and high school, and many students go on to study more of it in university, several factors conspire to prevent many Japanese from acquiring usable English. These include the nature of the English educational system, which uses outdated methods like translation; the extreme difference between English and Japanese pronunciation and grammar; and the typical reticence of the Japanese, who may be shy to speak a language that they haven’t mastered.
There are several ways to facilitate communication with Japanese who may not have a mastery of spoken English:
Always start with a smile to create a sense of ease.
Speak very slowly and clearly.
When asking for information, choose people of university age or thereabouts, as these people are most likely to speak some English. Also, Japanese women tend to speak and understand English much better than Japanese men.
If necessary, write down your question; Japanese are often able to understand written English even when they can’t understand spoken English.
Use the sample phrases in this chapter and, if necessary, point to the Japanese phrase in question.
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GRAMMAR
To English speakers, Japanese language patterns often seem to be back to front and lacking in essential information. For example, where an English speaker would say ‘I’m going to the shop’ a Japanese speaker would say ‘shop to going’, omitting the subject pronoun (I) altogether and putting the verb at the end of the sentence. Also, some conjunctions that in English are often placed at the start of a sentence, occur at the end of a sentence in Japanese, as in the sentence ‘Japan to going if’ – ‘if you’re going to Japan’.
Fortunately for visitors to Japan, it’s not all bad news. In fact, with a little effort, getting together a repertoire of travellers’ phrases should be no trouble – the only problem will be understanding