Greetings from Finland!

I’m care free guy in my early thirties, and I’ve been interested in all things Japanese as long as I can remember. My interest probably began after seeing the first Karate Kid, continued with some ninja and samurai action, and has now matured to (japanese) food and drink appreciation.

Some of my other japanese interests include: Onsen and sentoo, architecture (specially when it’s designed tiny), movies (samurai, ninja and yakuza) and manga (make it slapstick comedy with panties and nosebleeds, thank you!).

I’ve been to Japan several times before (Kyoto, Osaka, Tokyo), and I’ve studied some survival/tourist Japanese for those trips. I’ve also studied Mandarin Chinese, and I think I’ve got the Kanji writing and, (basic) kanji meanings covered quite well. Hopefully, learning new pronunciations won’t be too confusing.

The reason, or my main motivation to learn Japanese is, that I’ve been invited to a friends wedding in Japan. I want to be able to converse with my friends relatives, and maybe even hold a little speech in Japanese.
I’ve got about 10 months to reach (small talk) conversational, (but I take what I can get). Do you guys think I can make it, or am I just delusional? How far would the six seasons (or seasons 7/8 in nine months time) in textfugu take me?

Anyway, happy new year everyone (it’s not too late to say it, is it?) and good luck with your studies!

- Alexi