Japan is rightly known for the superiority of its trains (densha, 電車; ressha, 列車). This refers to not only the speed of the bullet train (shinkansen, 新幹線) but also the coverage of local trains, as well as trams (romendensha, 路面電車), within the major cities. With Tokyo’s urban sprawl making long commutes a daily ordeal for many salarymen, foreigners who find work there will also have to get used to this taking up large parts of their day, and to try and use this time effectively.
Learning Japanese by Traveling
Taking the train in Japan on a regular basis, having to deal with the various situations that arise, and getting travel information will involve you being exposed to a lot of new words, phrases, and kanji. Japan has clearly made a large effort to make its transport network more accessible to non-Japanese speakers, with English explanations and translations frequently available in road and rail systems, which is also expanded into Chinese, Korean, and others on the airport links. However, you can still be faced with rail maps written only in kanji in Tokyo subway stations, station staff who can only communicate in Japanese, and stations on train lines in Tokyo at which the platform signs are only written in hiragana and kanji. There is excellent information in English about all possible facets of train travel in Japan online, but you will still need some language skills to get by.
The first thing to learn is obviously the names of stations and lines. In fact, the station names are an ideal source for kanji practice, as they are usually written in English, hiragana, and kanji, so you can learn the correct readings of many kanji symbols. Indeed, many of the simpler kanji are used in station names, so for example, a trip around the Yamanote Line (山手線, kanji meanings: mountain, hand, line) in Tokyo will see you stopping at Shinagawa (品川: goods, river), Meguro (目黒: eye, black), Shinjuku (新宿: new, lodging), Mejiro (目白: eye, white), and Ueno (上野: up, field). Therefore, a great kanji starting point can be learning the characters on signs when your train stops at the same platforms every day on the way to work.
Studying Japanese while Traveling
Not only can the signs, sounds, and chances to communicate that are involved in train travel be used to boost your language skills, but the actual time spent commuting can be used for direct study. The average of 68 minutes for a one-way commute in Tokyo can be perfect for a study session before or after work, as long as you prepare the necessary study aids and can maintain your concentration while being crushed and having to keep your balance using only a handle suspended from the ceiling. You can see many Japanese practicing English on their commute, using textbooks or quietly repeating English phrases delivered via an mp3 player.
Listening practice using headphones may be the best option. You can drown out the frequent announcements and improve your ability to understand spoken Japanese, and the need to concentrate can also make your journey pass much more quickly. There are many podcasts available from iTunes for example, and many of the main Japanese textbooks come with CDs full of conversations, which can be downloaded onto an mp3 player with little difficulty. You could also record your own word lists as a way of boosting your vocabulary. Alternatively, kanji cards are another portable option, easy to use in a secluded space, but sure to attract a few inquisitive glances from your fellow sardines. It just requires the determination to study while still dozy in the morning or tired after a full day on the go.
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