LanguageFan

I have studied both French and Japanese. I studied Japanese for many years (including 2 years at University) but I never seemed to make any progress beyond basic/intermediate. French is easier and I can speak and read reasonably well but struggle with listening skills. I adore both languages. A quick Benjamin Franklin - French provides more ways to practise I believe. Most films have French audio or subtitles. There are not so many for Japanese. Japanese - There are many Japanese tourists in the world and I think there are more opportunities to work in hospitality, tour guide, events - when you can assist Japanese tourists. Most French tourists have excellent English and need less assistance with language. In a nutshell, I couldn't decide which language to push on with so I decided to learn both (with more emphasis on Japanese). I use programs/apps where I set the "learning from" language to French and the "language to be learned" to Japanese and eliminate English. I watch NHK World every day and immerse myself in their language programs. I accept that I may never be fluent or even understand very much of what I hear, so I focus on learning the basics extremely well in both formal and polite speech. Keep it simple and master it. As for kanji, that is a lifetime commitment and to be studied for its beauty. I don't expect to be able to read a newspaper, so I stick to children's books and magazines.