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LINGUA FRANCA |
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| Learning Japanese for the Smiling Sushi Shop Man | |||||
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by Amanda KendleAfter just a few weeks in Japan, I had a routine. Before my early afternoon start at my English conversation school job, I'd visit the sushi shop next door and pick out a foam tray of my favorite maki-zushi. I was only going to take it a few meters from the shop to my desk and eat it, so my environment-conscious upbringing said no to the plastic bag which impeccable customer service in Japan almost compulsorily provides. A Japanese receptionist at my school taught me the
phrase "iranai," which
means "I don't need it", and before long the smiling sushi
shop man and I were friends because of our special secret—I was
that foreigner who didn't need a bag.
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If one of his assistants served me, he'd appear from nowhere to explain this to them. Unfortunately, our lack of a common language kept our relationship at this polite stalemate for some months. I picked up a few more Japanese phrases. After a while, I was even able to add small talk about the weather, but it didn't seem enough.
Many who have lived in a foreign country know that it's entirely possible to get by without knowing much of the local language—gestures, pictures and pointing, and the odd bit of vocabulary, are often all you need for everyday living. Language teachers are ironically the worst offenders for not learning any of the language of their new country; we're usually in transitional jobs, and don't plan to stay more than a year or two before making another new home. I wasn't even allowed to use any Japanese words in class, so there really weren't that many times in the day when the language was useful. |
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