Quote:
Originally Posted by fuzzyice
So, in grade 9 I started learning Japanese as my second language. things have been progressing nicely, good grades and good cultural understanding. It hasn't been until recently that I've asked myself, where can I go with this career wise? my resume already notes that I have an introductory level of Japanese, which is a bit dated, but I'm only 17 years old and still have a year or so left of school. so my question is, where can I go with Japanese as a second language? I have a huge interest in Japanese culture and language. I also live on the west coast of Canada, where theres quite a bit of tourism; so I already know tourism is an option. I prefer not to deal with people, but even so I think I have good people skills. I have an easy time understanding other cultures, and hold an interest in learning about them. I'm interested in traveling, but mainly to places in Asia. I'm more of a hands on kind of person, I hate the idea of sitting in an office for 8 hours day in and day out. I'm also open to possible jobs in Japan other than teaching English; and I know you need a bachelors degree for a foreigner to work there.
I've probably left out a lot of details about myself, but any suggestions you could give would be great. I'm having a real hard time thinking about a career.
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A personal story x]
During my 6th grade year, I had begun developing a mild interest in Japanese culture. During my 7th grade year, I began studying bits and pieces of Japanese. I started by picking words out of a dictionary. It wasn't until 8th grade that I actually started studying the grammar and other aspects of the language. I continued this on and off until 9th grade when I stopped almost completely. Anyway, all that studying earned me knowledge the equivalent of a J2 student.
The summer of my senior year of high school, my Dad hooked me up with a local sushi-ya in Houston (Miyako for the Houstonians in this forum x]). Thus beginning my career a sushi chef. Eventually, I moved from the back of the kitchen too the front of the house working at the bar. The sushi-ya, being owned by a Chinese and being aimed towards American clientele, naturally attracted very few Japanese. So I started noting all the Japanese that visited and chatted with them in my broken Japanese. Eventually, the son of my current boss dropped by Miyako for a few drinks. I started talking too him and after a bit he noted that he was going too Japan for a few months and that his parents might need a little help running the bar since his dad was the only chef working there. I took him up on it and paid the sushi-ya a visit.
The sushi-ya, Teppay (google it), is a little hole-in-the-wall restaurant that is run by a Japanese family with a classically trained chef. Anyway, they hired me and now I'm an apprentice under THE best Itamae in Houston, Texas.
*The main reason they hired me was because I speak some Japanese*
x]
Point of Story:
With a little bit of luck, a bit of perseverance, and just the right connections you can go quite a ways with your Japanese; I sure did.
lol x]
^---Yes, that's my success story, lol xD.... in progress