• pHr34kY@lemmy.world
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    11 months ago

    I did my first trip to Tokyo a few months ago. A week before leaving I started playing a kana learning game on my phone while I was on the train to work. I also played it during the flight over.

    Two things I figured out:

    1. Just learn katakana. Even if you do learn hiragana, it just sounds out the japanase words that you don’t know anyway. Katakana seemed to be used exclusively for English pronunciation.

    2. It’s actually fun. The majority of signs and labels are bilingual and you will see English and Katakana side-by-side. Once I walked into a cafe (in Disneyland) that had no English menu. The whole thing was katakana. I figured out how to order a “ka-fe ra-te” (cafe latte) and a “ko-ka ko-ra” (Coca Cola). I was so pleased with myself.