Notes: This page is written mostly in English and Romanized Japanese.
However, some part is written in REAL Japanese like the next line:
にほんご。日本語。ロサンゼルス上級日本語学校。
Also, some links lead to pages expressed in Japanese characters,
which may look gibberish depending on your OS/browser's settings.

E-mail: AdvancedJP


Time in Tokyo -
東京 時間
Time in Los Angeles -
L.A. 時間
Find the best time across Time Zones:
Meeting Planner


Advanced Japanese Language School
of Los Angeles

Skype/Zoom lessons are available.
In addition to the voice and video, get ready to use Skype's "Chats" 
to read/write Kanji with the largest font-size possible.
Recommended "Chats" setting: 
Setting (Ctrl + Comma) ⇒ Messaging ⇒ Text size ⇒ "Larger" 
among the five choices.

   -- Read Japanese newspaper articles.

   -- Read essays and novels in Japanese.

   -- Prepare for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT: N1 or N2 level) or AP Japanese.

   -- Have real conversation in Japanese on current topics.

   -- Watch Japanese anime animation videos in their original Japanese with English subtitles.
   Such as "Kiki's Delivery Service" 魔女の宅急便

   -- All the above in a relaxed atmosphere.

Lessons are most appropriate for those prospective students who 
graduated from colleges as Japanese majors/minors 
OR 
finished the third-year or fourth-year level college courses using textbooks such as 
中級の日本語, "An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese",  
上級へのとびら, "Gateway to Advanced Japanese", or, 
みんなの日本語中級II, "Minna No Nihongo".
Japanese instructors who teach at high schools and 
are non-native speakers of Japanese are very welcome.
Also good for those who have lived in Japan and acquired good 
listening/reading skills in Japanese. 

The school is based in the so-called Westside area of the Los Angeles County,
serving students mainly from Culver City, Playa Vista, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, 
Venice, Santa Monica, Palms, West Los Angeles.
Currently, only private lessons are available.

ALL the willing students welcome:
Young or Old 
Women, Men (or Others)
Bright or Not so bright
East Asians or Non-East Asians
Repeated attempts at Japanese? Third time's the charm.

Write to 
メール:AdvancedJP at (ホットメール) .COM 
-- Replace "@" and "hotmail".
Or call
でんわ:424-八三五-0771 (voice/text)

Recommended dictionaries:

Online Dictionary, web-based (Free): goo.ne.jp
'Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary'
プログレッシブ和英中辞典(小学館)
Published by Shogakukan
Whole content available free online at the goo.ne.jp site.

Good complete example sentences in Japanese, 
which are longer than many other dictionaries contain.
This is originally meant for high school and college students
who learn ENGLISH as a second language in Japan.
However, as there are no advanced-level Japanese-English
dictionaries available which are originally prepared for
non-Japanese native speakers, this dictionary is a good alternative.
Also available together is:
'Progressive English-Japanese Dictionary'

プログレッシブ英和中辞典(小学館)

Off line dictionary: no internet connection required.
[iPhone/iPad app]
(オフライン) プログレッシブ英和(5版)・和英(4版)辞典(小学館)[Not free]
(Offline) The "Progressive" English-Japanese Dictionary, Shogakukan
プログレッシブ和英中辞典
近藤 いね子 (編集), 高野 フミ (編集)
(Offline) The "Progressive" Japanese-English Dictionary, Shogakukan
プログレッシブ英和中辞典
国広 哲弥 (編集), 堀内 克明 (編集), 安井 稔 (編集)
開発: Keisokugiken Corporation

Off line dictionary: no internet connection required.
[Android app]
(オフライン) プログレッシブ英和(5版)・和英(4版)辞典(小学館)[Not free]
(Offline) The "Progressive" English-Japanese Dictionary, Shogakukan
プログレッシブ和英中辞典
近藤 いね子 (編集), 高野 フミ (編集)
(Offline) The "Progressive" Japanese-English Dictionary, Shogakukan
プログレッシブ英和中辞典
国広 哲弥 (編集), 堀内 克明 (編集), 安井 稔 (編集)
㈱ 富士通パーソナルズ

Handwritten Kanji recognition: 漢字の手書き認識
Kanji Recognizer Android free app
The Free version comes with advertisement.
Its developer: Nikolay Elenkov

'Essential Japanese Expressions Grammatical Points Dictionary'
どんなときどう使う 日本語表現文型辞典
友松 悦子 (著), 宮本 淳 (著), 和栗 雅子 (著)
By Etsuko Tomomatsu, Jun Miyamoto, Masako Waguri
Originally published in 2007
Minor revision in 2010
ISBN-10: 4757418868
ISBN-13: 978-4757418868
- N1 through N5
- Written by the same authors of the famed "500 Expressions" book.
- Partial explanations in English/Korean/Chinese

'A Dictionary of ADVANCED Japanese Grammar'
Written by Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui
Published by The Japan Times, 2008

'A Dictionary of INTERMEDIATE Japanese Grammar'
Written by Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui
Published by The Japan Times, 1995

'A Dictionary of BASIC Japanese Grammar'
Written by Seiichi Makino and Michio Tsutsui
Published by The Japan Times, 1986, 1989

More dictionaries on this page

Example Textbooks:

'Read Real Japanese Essays':
Contemporary Writings by Popular Authors
Janet Ashby (Editor), Reiko Matsunaga (Narrator)
1 CD included (Paperback)
Publisher: Kodansha USA; June 1, 2012
ISBN-10: 1568364148
ISBN-13: 978-1568364148
$15.99

Excellent notes and partial translations by the editor Janet Ashby
with her deep understanding of Japanese language and culture.

Essays are written by:
Haruki Murakami, Banana Yoshimoto, Mitsuyo Kakuta, Junko Sakai,
Yoko Ogawa, Kou Machida, Keiichiro Hirano and Hideo Levy.

'Read Real Japanese Fiction ':
Contemporary Writers
Michael Emmerich (Editor), Reiko Matsunaga (Narrator)
1 CD included (Paperback)
Publisher: Kodansha USA; June 2, 2008
Six writers: Hiromi Kawakami, Otsuichi, Shinji Ishii, Banana Yoshimoto, Kaoru Kitamura, Yoko Tawada
ISBN-10: 4770030584
ISBN-13: 978-4770030580
$24.00

'Short Stories in Japanese: New Penguin Parallel Text'
Michael Emmerich (Editor)
Penguin Books (May 31, 2011)
$20.00

'Living Japanese: Diversity in Language and Lifestyles '
(Conversations with Native Speakers)

『生きた日本語』
Karen Colligan-Taylor (Author)
Yale University Press; December 15, 2006
$40.00
ISBN-10: 030010958X
ISBN-13: 978-0300109580

Professor Karen Colligan-Taylor interviews Japanese people living in Japan and 
records them in DVD video.  
They answer in very natural Japanese and the responses are transcribed in great details, 
including hesitation, rephrasing, etc.  
As a Japanese language learner, you do not have to imitate the way they talk, 
but can become more familiar with which utterances are more essential or non-essential.  
Very uniquely compiled book.

"Nihongo so mato" Nihongo Noryokushiken Taisaku - N1 Bunpou (JLPT N1 Grammar)
「日本語能力試験」対策 日本語総まとめ N1 文法
佐々木 仁子 (著), 松本 紀子 (著)
ISBN-10: 4872177266
ISBN-13: 978-4872177268
出版社: アスク出版; B5版 (2010/4/12)
価格: ¥ 1,296
Amazon JP link to the same: N1 Grammar
Enjoyable themes, illustrations and good example sentences.
Partial translations in English, Chinese and Korean.

Shin Kanzen Master: N1 Grammar (Bunpou) for JLPT
新完全マスター 文法 日本語能力試験 N1
友松 悦子 (著), 福島 佐知 (著), 中村 かおり (著)
ISBN-10: 4883195643
ISBN-13: 978-4883195640
出版社: スリーエーネットワーク; 2011/06
$23.15
Notes: The New Kanzen Master, 新完全マスター, series is the most thorough and
hardest among other test-preparation book series.
You may recover your self-esteem if you try comparable books by the other publishers.

Japanese Language Proficiency Test JLPT N1 Reading Comprehension
"Nihongo so mato" Nihongo Noryokushiken taisaku

日本語総まとめ N1 読解 (「日本語能力試験」対策)
佐々木 仁子 (著), 松本 紀子 (著)
出版社: アスク出版; B5版 (2010/11/10)
ISBN-10: 4872177657
ISBN-13: 978-4872177657
$19.85

Shin Kanzen Master: N1 Reading Comprehension exercises for JLPT
新完全マスター 読解 日本語能力試験 N1
福岡 理恵子 (著), 初鹿野 阿れ (著), 中村 則子 (著), 田代 ひとみ (著), 清水 知子 (著)
出版社: スリーエーネットワーク; 2011/09
ISBN-10: 4883195716
ISBN-13: 978-4883195718
$24.21

Japanese Language Proficiency Test JLPT N1 Kanji
"Nihongo so mato" Nihongo Noryokushiken taisaku

日本語総まとめ N1 漢字 (「日本語能力試験」対策)
佐々木 仁子 (著), 松本 紀子 (著)
出版社: アスク出版; B5版 (2010/4/15)
ISBN-10: 487217724X
ISBN-13: 978-4872177244

"Speed Master" The Workbook for the Japanese Language Proficiency Test
N1 Vocabulary exercises

スピードマスター 日本語能力試験問題集 N1 語彙
中島 智子、高橋 尚子、松本 知恵 著
ISBN-10: 4863920733
ISBN-13: 978-4863920736
出版社: ジェイ・リサーチ出版; October, 2011 Jリサーチ出版
$21.99
The good thing is that most words are presented as collocations, not just as single words.
More emphasis on collocations make this N1 vocabulary book better than a comparable N1 book in the 日本語総まとめ series.
Partial translations in English, Chinese and Korean.
The same N1 vocabulary book at Amazon JP
¥1,260

N1 Grammar and Usage exercises for JLPT
日本語能力試験 N1 文法対策 ― 1回で合格!
佐々木 瑞枝 (監修), 薄井 廣美 (著), 藤尾 喜代子 (著), 斎藤 誠 (著)
978-4471274917
高橋書店; May, 2011
¥1,470

Nihongo Noryokushiken Taisaku - Nihongo sou matome - N2 Bunpou (JLPT N2 Grammar)
「日本語能力試験」対策 日本語総まとめ N2 文法
佐々木 仁子 (著), 松本 紀子 (著)
ISBN-10: 4872177290
ISBN-13: 978-4872177299
出版社: アスク出版; B5版 (2010/3/25)
価格: ¥ 1,296
Amazon JP link to the same: N2 Grammar

New Kanzen Master Grammar (Bunpo) Japanese Language Proficiency Test N2, JLPT
(Shin Kanzen Masuta Bunpo Nihongo Noryoku Shiken N2)
新完全マスター 文法 日本語能力試験 N2
友松 悦子 (著), 福島 佐知 (著), 中村 かおり (著)
出版社: スリーエーネットワーク (2011/07)
ISBN-10: 4883195651
ISBN-13: 978-4883195657
$22.43

Shin Kanzen Master: N2 Reading Comprehension (Dokkai) exercises for JLPT
新完全マスター 読解 日本語能力試験 N2
田代 ひとみ (著), 初鹿野 阿れ (著), 清水 知子 (著), 福岡 理恵子 (著), 中村 則子 (著)
出版社: スリーエーネットワーク; August, 2011
ISBN-10: 4883195724
ISBN-13: 978-4883195725
$25.71

表現文型500 (N1 or N2 level)
'500 Essential Japanese Expressions'
A Guide to Correct Usage of Key Sentence Patterns
どんなときどう使う 日本語表現文型500(改訂版)
日本語能力試験N1~N3の重要表現を網羅
友松 悦子 (著), 宮本 淳 (著), 和栗 雅子 (著)
出版社: アルク; 改訂版 (2010/06)
Published by ALC Press
ISBN-10: 4757418906
ISBN-13: 978-4757418905
$42.08
Revised edition of the pioneering book for intermediate/advanced students.

The above book is a good textbook to prepare you for 
the Japanese Language Proficiency Test 
(Nihongo Nōryoku Shiken 日本語能力試験),  "N1" and "N2", 
namely the first and second classes from the top level.

練習帳
(改訂版)どんなときどう使う 日本語表現文型500短文完成練習帳
'WORKBOOK for 500 Essential Japanese Expressions'
友松 悦子 (著)
出版社: アルク; 改訂版 (2011/12/8)
ISBN-10: 4757420528
ISBN-13: 978-4757420526
$25.81
The accompanying WORKBOOK for the "500" textbook

表現文型200 (N3, N4 or N5 level)
'200 Essential Japanese Expressions' (Revised)
-- A Guide to Correct Usage of Key Sentence Patterns
どんなときどう使う日本語表現文型200 (改訂版)
友松 悦子 (著), 宮本 淳 (著), 和栗 雅子 (著)
出版社: アルク; 改訂版 (2013/1/26)
ISBN-10: 4757422601
ISBN-13: 978-4757422605
価格: ¥2,520
Beggining and Intermediate level version written by the same
authors of the famed "500" book.
Explanations are in Japanese, English, Chinese and now Korean.
This book has many things that only advanced students would
really appreciate.

More books/dictionaries on a separate page

If you are interested, send an e-mail
describing your study experience and textbooks used, etc.
to AdvancedJP.

Distant lessons via Skype are possible.


Other Japanese language schools/classes:

UCLA Extension Programs
University of California, Los Angeles

University of California, Los Angeles: UCLA
East Asian Languages & Cultures: EALC
Civilizations of China, Korea, Japan and India.
BA, MA, PhD.
Terasaki Center for Japanese Studies at UCLA
Created in 1991

USC: University of Southern California
East Asian Languages and Cultures

Pomona College
Asian Languages and Literatures
4-year private college located in Claremont, California, 
35 miles east of Los Angeles.
Pomona College is one of The Claremont Colleges, 
a consortium of five undergraduate and two graduate 
institutions: 
Claremont Graduate University, Scripps College, 
Claremont McKenna College, Harvey Mudd College, 
Pitzer College, the Keck Graduate Institute of 
Applied Life Sciences, and Pomona College

Santa Monica College: SMC
Japanese classes

El Camino College: ECC
Japanese classes
Torrance, CA

Pasadena City College: PCC
Japanese classes

Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD)
Most of the nine college within the district offer 
Elementary Japanese classes.
West LA College (WLAC), Los Angeles City College 
(LACC), Valley College (LAVC), Pierce College, 
East LA College (ELAC), Harbor College (LAHC), 
Southwest College (LASC), Trade-Tech College (LATTC), 
Mission College (LAMC)

Cal State Northridge (CSUN)
California State University, Northridge

Cal State Long Beach (CSULB)
California State University, Long Beach

Cal State Los Angeles (CSULA)
California State University, Los Angeles

Cal State Dominguez Hills (CSUDH)
California State University, Dominguez Hills
1000 E. Victoria Street, Carson, CA 90747

Citrus College
Address:
1000 W Foothill Blvd
Glendora, CA 91741

Long Beach City College
Liberal Arts Campus:
4901 East Carson Street
Long Beach, CA 90808

Pacific Coast Campus:
1305 East Pacific Coast Highway
Long Beach, CA 90806 

Moorpark College (in Ventura County)
Address:
7075 Campus Road
Moorpark, CA 93021

JF Nihongo: Japanese language courses
Location: Miracle Mile
5700 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 100, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Textbooks:
Marugoto: Japanese Language and Culture (A1 level/ Starter)
Marugoto: Japanese Language and Culture (A2 level/ Elementary 1)
"Marugoto +" textbook reference site
「まるごと+(プラス)」(Marugoto Plus)
An excellent, but relatively unknown, beginning Japanese site.
You can use the audio-visual site independently without the textbooks.
(Home Page) The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles: JFLA
国際交流基金 (Kokusai Koryu Kikin)
Try their Facebook pages
Formerly The Japan Foundation Los Angeles Office & Language Center (1994-2004) 
Formerly The Japan Foundation Los Angeles Office (1983-1994)
Address: Miracle Mile Headquarters
5700 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tel (323) 761-7510
Fax (323) 761-7517
Located a little east of the Hancock Park.
Moved from Downtown Los Angeles.
Previously in the "Water Garden" in Santa Monica.
They have a good library anyone can use. 

Meetup groups for Japanese language and culture 
nihonLA
Meet people with the same interests locally.

Online: Japanese Language Stack Exchange 
"A question and answer site for students, teachers, and linguists wanting to discuss 
the finer points of the Japanese language."

Japanese-English Conversation Exchange
"Koban" Police Sub-Station
in Little Tokyo, downtown L.A.
This program NO LONGER available.

Culver City Unified School District
Note: The following link might change occasionally.
Culver City Adult School
"Japanese for ALL Levels"

Online learning (Free)
"Easy Japanese"  やさしい日本語 by NHK
Full content of the 48-lesson textbook for beginners is available free, 
including full audio and partial video.
NHK, the provider, is Japan's national public broadcasting system, 
sort of the counterpart of BBC or NPR/PBS.
Table: Japanese "Hiragana" characters

Marugoto Plus まるごと プラス The Japan Foundation
"Marugoto" comprehensive audio-visual elementary Japanese mentioned above
A1 level/ Starter
A2 level/ Elementary 1
Marugoto Words まるごと の ことば

Japanese-Online
Free online Japanese lessons, online dictionary, 
discussion forum, etc.
If you are just starting, you can get some idea about 
Japanese language from the lessons.

MIT OpenCourseWare
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Advanced Japanese I
Instructors:
Yoshimi Nagaya, Ayumi Nagatomi
Texbook:
Japanese: The Spoken Language by Eleanor H. Jordan with Mari Noda. 
Advanced Japanese II
Instructor:
Yoshimi Nagaya
Texbook:
The same as above.
The above undergraduate courses seem to go up to N4 or N3 level of JLPT at most.
FUJI SCHOOL
Japanese Language school in Little Tokyo (Downtown LA) and in the Mid Wilshire area.
The school uses the みんなの日本語, Minna no Nihongo, series of books 
as their main textbooks.

Little Tokyo:
244 South San Pedro St.
Los Angeles CA 90012
Phone: (213) 788-3305

Mid-Wilshire:
3540 Wilshire Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90010

"Language Door" formerly "Foreign Language Society"
Language school in the West Los Angeles area and in Orange County.
11870 Santa Monica Blvd, Suite 202 
Los Angeles, CA 90025 
(Moved from Westwood Blvd. & Pico Blvd.)
Phone: (310) 826-4140 

Osaka Sangyo University L.A.: OSULA
Studio City, CA 91604

Berlitz Language Centers

Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies (IUC)
Yokohama, Japan
横浜 Stanford Administrative Office Sponsored jointly by 16 US universities (formerly 11 US and Canadian universities, "11-Daigaku"): University of California, Los Angeles; Columbia University; Cornell University; Harvard University; Indiana University; Ohio State University; Princeton University; Stanford University; University of California, Berkeley; University of Chicago; University of Hawaii; University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; University of Michigan; University of Washington; University of Wisconsin, Madison; Yale University.
Defense Language Institute (DLI) Foreign Language Center: DLIFLC
Presidio of Monterey, California
formerly:
Military Intelligence Service Language School
and 
Army Language School
Originally it began as a secret language school named 
the Defense Language Institute in November 1941 at 
Crissy Field on the Presidio of San Francisco 
to teach Japanese.

Have you heard of Edward Seidensticker and Donald Keene?

Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey: MIIS
(Formerly: Monterey Institute of International Studies)
Degree Programs:
Master of Arts in Translation; Translation and Interpretation; Conference Interpretation
Master of Arts in Translation and Localization Management
Master of Arts in TESOL and Master of Arts in Teaching Foreign Language
Master of Arts in International Education Management
Master of Arts in International Environmental Policy
Master of Arts in International Policy and Development
Master of Arts in International Trade and Economic Diplomacy
Master of Arts in Nonproliferation and Terrorism Studies
Master of Public Administration
Master of Business Administration
Address:
460 Pierce Street
Monterey, CA  93940
Phone (831) 647-3520

Japanese-Language Institute, Urawa
The Japan Foundation 
国際交流基金 日本語国際センター
Training Programs for Teachers (of Japanese Language)
Address:
5-6-36 Kita Urawa, Urawa-ku
Saitama-shi, Saitama-ken 330-0074, Japan
"Urawa-ku" was formerly "Urawa-shi" before the city 
merged with Omiya-shi and Yono-shi and became part 
of "Saitama-shi" in 2001, the 13th year of Heisei period.

National Institute for Japanese Language and Linguistics: NINJAL
Kokuritsu Kokugo Kenkyujo
Formerly The National Language Research Institute: NLRI
The English title of the Institute was changed in April 2001.

Kyodo System: The Japanese Language School Unified System
A group of Japanese language schools in Southern California, 
whose main mission has been to teach Japanese to descendants 
of Japanese Americans.  So-called "heritage Japanese" category.
There are some classes for adults too.

Seven member schools:
Rafu Chuo Gakuen (Preschool, Elementary, Jr. & Sr. High School) 
202 N. Saratoga Street, Los Angeles 90033 
Phone: (323) 268-4955 (Saturday) 

Rafu Daiichi Gakuen (Elementary)
1218 Menlo Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90006 
Phone: (213) 383-4706 

JR. and SR. High School (Jr. & Sr. High, Cultural Classes)
1218 Menlo Ave., Los Angeles CA 90006 
Phone: (213) 383-4706 

Valley Gakuen (Elementary, Jr. & Sr. High School)
8850 Lankershim Blvd., Sun Valley, CA 91352 
Phone: (818) 767-9921 (Saturday) 

Pasadena Gakuen (Elementary/ Jr. High School)
595 Lincoln Avenue, Pasadena CA 91103
Phone: (626) 356-9061 (Saturday) 

Orange Coast Gakuen (Elementary, Jr. & Sr. High School) 
9700 Levee Dr., Huntington Beach, CA 92646
Phone: (714) 964-7446 (Saturday) 

Riverside Gakuen (Elementary)
8172 Magnolia Ave., Riverside CA 92504 
Phone: (213) 383-4706 

Non-Kyodo "heritage Japanese" schools:

SAWTELLE GAKUIN
Japanese Language School
Japanese Institute of Sawtelle
2110 Corinth Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90025
310-479-2477

Venice Gakuen
Japanese Language School
Venice Japanese Community Center
12448 Braddock Dr.
Los Angeles, CA 90066
310-822-7781

Gardena Japanese Cultural Institute Japanese Language School
1964 W 162nd St.
Gardena, CA 90247
310-324-6611

Gardena Buddhist Church: Japanese Language School
1517 West 166th Street
Gardena, California 90247
310-327-9400

West Covina Japanese Language School
1203 W Puente Av, West Covina, CA 91790
626-337-6174

Orange County Japanese Language School
909 S Dale Av, Anaheim, CA 92804
714-827-9590

"Japanese Immersion Program" for children
El Marino Language School, an elementary school.
Also a "Spanish Immersion Program" at this school.
School address:
11450 Port Road
Culver City, CA 90230
(3l0) 842-4241
Culver City Unified School District (CCUSD)

Nishiyamato Academy of California
西大和学園カリフォルニア校
A private Japanese international day school 
Pre-K through 9th grade
Address: 
2458 Lomita Blvd.
Lomita, CA, 90717

Now defunct:
Los Angeles International Academy
Also called The International Bilingual School
ロサンゼルス国際学園 
K through Grade 9
Palos Verdes Estates, CA

Nishimachi International School
Famed co-educational and non-sectarian school 
in central Tokyo, Japan.
Taught in dual-language: English and Japanese. 
Kindergarten through Grade 9. 
Address: 
2-14-7 Moto-Azabu
Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-0046, Japan
Phone: 03-3451-5538 or 03-3451-5520
E-mail: admissions@nishimachi.ac.jp

Culver City High School
Japanese
Address: 
4401 Elenda Street
Culver City, CA 9023-0180 

LACES: Los Angeles Center For Enriched Studies
A LAUSD magnet school: Grades 6-12
Japanese
Japanese 1, Japanese 2, Japanese 3, Japanese 4/AP Japanese
Address: 
5931 WEST 18TH ST 
LOS ANGELES, CA 90035
Syllabus Japanese 1 through 3
Japanese Teacher: Ms. Ai Ikuma

Samohi: Santa Monica High School
Japanese
Address: 
601 Pico Boulevard
Santa Monica, CA 90405

Venice High School, LAUSD
Foreign Language Magnet
For grades 9-12.
Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, French, German, 
Italian, Latin, Spanish.
Address: 
13000 Venice Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90066
(310) 306-7981
Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD)

Torrance High School
Japanese
Address: 
2200 W. Carson Street
Torrance, CA 90501
Phone: 
(310) 533-4396

Arcadia High School
Japanese
Address: 
180 CAMPUS DR.
Arcadia , California 91007

Asahi Gakuen
あさひ学園
Serves mainly children of expatriate Japanese 
business people, somewhat mistakenly called "shosha".
The most students are native speakers of Japanese.
Main Office:
244 S. San Pedro St., #308, Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 613-1325

Four school locations in LA and Orange Counties.
Santa Monica site:
DANIEL WEBSTER MIDDLE SCHOOL
11330 W. Graham Place, Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 478-5707 (Saturdays: school hours only 8:45 to 16:00)

Torrance site:
TORRANCE SOUTH HIGH SCHOOL
4801 Pacific Coast Highway, Torrance, CA 90505
(310) 373-1177

San Gabriel site:
SOUTH EL MONTE HIGH SCHOOL
1001 N. Durfee Ave., South El Monte, CA 91733
(818) 579-6966

Orange site:
Santiago High School
12342 Trask Ave., Garden Grove, CA 92843
(714) 292-6190

ISS Translators, Inc.
Interpreter Training Center
(LA school closed in August 2010.)
Teaches consecutive and simultaneous interpreting 
techniques to mostly Japanese native speakers.
English to/from Japanese.
Classes are not meant for speakers of Japanese 
as a second language.
Address: 
3528 Torrance Blvd., #215
Torrance, CA 90503

Useful Japan-related links:




Japanese Input Method: Web-based Ajax IME
You can input Kanji on non-Japanese PCs anywhere.
All you need is a browser on a computer of your friend or a work place.

Separately, for your own PC with Windows 10, 8, 7, Windows Vista,  XP or 2000: 
Your installation CD includes input system and fonts for Japanese 
as well as for many other languages.
Control Panel > Regional and Language Options > Languages tab
Under "Supplemental language support", 
choose "Install files for East Asian languages" 
and figure out the rest yourself.

Google Japanese Input (IME)
You can input real Japanese characters, Kanji, Hiragana, Katakana 
on your PC and Mac as long as your machine has Japanese fonts installed.
Published on 12/03/2009 as a beta version.
Free.  You install the software on your PC or Mac.  
Internet connection is not required when you use it.
Available on Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, XP SP2 and Mac OS X v10.5 (Leopard) and later.
The user guide is available in Japanese and Chinese only.

The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles: JFLA
国際交流基金 (Kokusai Koryu Kikin)
Formerly The Japan Foundation Los Angeles Office & Language Center (1994-2004) 
Formerly The Japan Foundation Los Angeles Office (1983-1994)
Address: 
5700 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tel (323) 761-7510
Fax (323) 761-7517
Located a little east of the Hancock Park.
Moved from Downtown Los Angeles.
Previously in the "Water Garden" in Santa Monica.
They have a good library anyone can use. 

Japan Foundation, the headquarters in Japan
国際交流基金 (Kokusai Koryu Kikin)
Notes: 
Japan Foundation, Kokusai Koryu Kikin, should not be confused with 
DBA Nippon Zaidan (Nippon Foundation -- formerly, The Japan Shipbuilding Industry Foundation 
or The Sasakawa Foundation), which is funded by motorboat racing and 
was originally founded by the late Ryoichi Sasakawa, also pronounced as "Sasagawa".  
This organization is now headed by Yohei Sasakawa, Ryoichi's son.
Ayako Sono, a well-known novelist, is a onetime Chairman.
DBA Nippon Zaidan (Nippon Foundation)
日本財団
Official name: Nihon Senpaku Shinkokai 
日本船舶振興会
(Japan Shipbuilding Industry Foundation)

Japanese Language Proficiency Test: JLPT 
(Nihongo Noryoku Shiken)
ADMINISTERED IN JAPAN
Japan Educational Exchanges and Services: JEES (Nihon Kokusai Kyoiku Shien Kyokai) Notes: 1) For the test given in North America:
Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Honolulu,
Vancouver, Toronto,
try "The Japan Foundation" site mentioned earlier.

2) Starting year 2010, there is another level between 2-Kyu and 3-Kyu, called N3.
The other levels are renamed accordingly, from the highest N1 through N5.

N1 (formerly 1-Kyu): the highest proficiency
N2 (formerly 2-Kyu)
N3 (newly created level)
N4 (formerly 3-Kyu)
N5 (formerly 4-Kyu) EJU: Examination for Japanese University Admission for International Students 日本留学試験(EJU) The same link above to Japan Student Services Organization (JASSO) 日本学生支援機構 Business Japanese Proficiency Test (BJT) ビジネス日本語能力テスト This exam was formerly administered by JETRO, the Japan External Trade Organization. Since April 2009, the "Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation" took over the administration. This same organization gives "Kanken" Kanji Kentei exams to Japanese native speakers. College Board
AP Japanese Language and Culture
Japan-America Society (Nichi-Bei Kyokai) Japan America Society of Southern California 345 South Figueroa Street Los Angeles, CA 90071-1002 Phone: (213) 627-6217 Fax: (213) 627-1353 JET Program: Japan Exchange and Teaching Work in local government organizations or at high schools. JET Alumni link JET Alumni Association of Southern California (JETAA) Contact: officers@jetaasc.org Consulate General of Japan, Los Angeles 領事館 Ryoji-kan 350 S. Grand Ave., Suite 1700 Los Angeles, CA 90071 (213) 617-6700 Embassy of Japan 大使館 Taishi-kan 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW Washington D.C. 20008 Tel: 202-238-6700 Fax: 202-328-2187 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Japan: Gaimu-sho Tokyo, Japan
Bookstores / Distributors/ Publishers
Amazon.com has presence in Japan now: Amazon.co.jp.
You can order books directly from Japan.
Many other online bookstores in Japan refuses to send 
their merchandize to the areas outside of Japan.
Your click links to a page titled
"Information for English-Speaking Customers."

Amazon.com's US site: 
Foreign Languages > Japanese

Bonjinsha
凡人社
A major distributor of textbooks for Japanese language studies.
Address:
1-3-13 Hirakawa-cho
Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0093, Japan TEL 03-3263-3959
Fujisan.com 富士山.com Online vendor based in Berkeley, California. 1942 University Ave #105 Berkeley, CA 94704 Sasuga bookstore (No longer a Japanese bookstore) Based in Massachusetts, U.S.A.: A good place to mail order Japanese textbooks. Kinokuniya Bookstores of America Co., Ltd. 紀伊國屋書店 Los Angeles Store los_angeles@kinokuniya.com (213) 687-4480 123 Astronaut Ellison S. Onizuka St. (Weller Court) Los Angeles, CA 90012 Downtown L.A., 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. * Good selection of textbooks for Japanese language learning. Not "Kiinokuniya" though you may think from its name written in Kanji. Kinokuniya Bookstore 紀伊國屋書店 Opened in early 2015. In the Mitsuwa Market complex 3760 Centinela Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90066 Sanseido Bookstore, Torrance Out of service since 2014 三省堂書店 (former site of Asahiya Bookstore) Do NOT pronounce the kanji characters of the store name as "Sanshodo." 21515 S Western Av. Torrance, CA 90501 Nippon Book, Downtown Los Angeles Little Tokyo 114 Japanese Village Plaza Los Angeles, CA 90012 (213) 617-1966 Asahiya Bookstore, Sawtelle store 旭屋書店 ソーテル店 Ceased its operation in September 2013. 2130 Sawtelle Blvd. Suite 207A Los Angeles, CA 90025 TEL: 310-575-3303 FAX: 310-575-4122 Sawtelle Books & Music 13301 W. Olympic Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90025 310-477-8686 Asahiya Bookstore, Downtown L.A. -- (no longer in business) -- 333 S Alameda St #108 Los Angeles, CA 90013 Sanseido Bookstore The largest Japanese bookstore in Orange County. Opened on June 6, 2003. Costa Mesa Store (at Mitsuwa Marketplace) 665 Paularino Ave. Costa Mesa CA 92626 (714) 556-2200 9:00AM - 8:00PM Shojikiya: Used books You may see some sewing machine-related products, their original line of business. 707 E 4th Pl. Los Angeles, CA 90013 Downtown L.A. near the Little Tokyo Shopping Center, which used to have a large Mitsuwa/Yaohan market. (213) 680 0173 Book Off: Used books 1610 W. Redondo Beach Blvd. Gardena, CA 90247 The former site of Tokyo-do bookstore.
310-532-5010
Japan Book Center / Bonjinsha (a bookstore-distributor) They moved from Santa Monica to San Francisco, CA, in May 2002.
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Dictionaries on the Web
Japanese <-> English Dictionary
Jeffrey E. F. Friedl

PSP's Bi-Directional English Japanese Dictionary
Pacific Software Publishing, Inc.
For J to E look-ups, only real Japanese input is accepted. 
Romanized Japanese, Romaji, is NOT allowed. 
Maybe good for simple reference.

Yahoo! (JP) Dictionaries
Progressive Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionaries by Shogakukan; 
プログレッシブ和英中辞典、プログレッシブ英和中辞典
Dai-jisen (大辞泉) Japanese-Japanese dictionary by Shogakukan; 
(No longer available here.) Dai-jirin (大辞林) Japanese-Japanese dictionary by Sanseido

New College Japanese-English and English-Japanese dictionaries.
By Kenkyusha at Excite.co.jp portal.
新和英中辞典 (研究社)
新英和中辞典 (研究社)
Not just tango, words, but plenty of jukugo, expressions.

EXCEED Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionaries by Sanseido
エクシード和英・英和辞典
Electronics company NEC's BIGLOBE portal site.

Progressive Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionaries by Shogakukan
Also, Shogakukan's J-J dictionary (Dai-jisen) 
Goo.ne.jp search engine site (NTT-X).

Sanseido, EXCEED Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionaries 
and Japanese-Japanese dictionary (Dai-jirin)
Notes: Shogakukan's dictionaries became unavailable when the Lycos was merged with Infoseek in 2003, which is owned by Rakuten: Progressive Japanese-English, English-Japanese dictionaries; Shin-jisen Japanese-Japanese dictionary and Nipponica abridged encyclopedia For some of those, try Yahoo! (JP) Dictionaries instead. Wikipedia encyclopedia Japanese A multilingual project to create a free-content encyclopedia started in January 2001. For the content in Japanese, click "日本語" (Japanese) from the "In Other Languages" list.
Portable Electronic Dictionaries Since July 1, 2003, electronic dictionaries and PDAs became available at Amazon JP site. Unfortunately though, most of these electronic products are deliverable only to addresses in Japan. If you have friends in Japan, maybe you can ask them to forward the ordered items to you. Rikai.com instant translation Read Text or Webpages with Popups!" Enter the web-address of your choice, such as "asahi.com" in the box and click "GO!". In the newly opened page, do the same
as in the original pages of Rikai.com.
Very innovative dictionary. Move your mouse pointer over a Japanese word to see its reading and definition. If you want the same at a Japanese website of your own choice, do the following: Under the title " "Eijiro", user-supported J-E, E-J dictionary: Space ALC 英辞郎 on the Web Look for "Eijiro (in Kanji) on the Web" and its search box at this "Space ALC" site. The large vocabulary is growing even further. Electronic Dictionary Project (EDP)
e-Word: IT vocabulary IT用語 e-Word オンライン辞典 Incept Inc.
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Newspapers / TV stations / Magazines
ANN News, TV-Asahi
Streaming videos and the exact texts in Japanese
of their narration.
Verify your listening skills. This can be your own
self-paced tutorial.
Once there, click an icon:
"Real Player" or Microsoft "Media Player".

Japan News Network, JNN Tokyo Broadcasting System, TBS Broad/narrow band video. Nearly exact text of the narration. NHK TV, News NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation): Nihon Hoso Kyokai (日本放送協会) Streaming video and the text. United Television Broadcasting Systems: UTB 18.2 Los Angeles local TV station Now on UHF Channel KSCI 18 (LA-18), no longer on KDOC 56. Address: 6779 Hawthorn Ave. Hollywood, CA 90028 USA Phone 323 469 2929 Also on the same channel, 18.2, "NHK World" TV broadcasting is available for some hours. (dead link) Asahi Homecast Ceased its Los Angeles TV broadcasting business. Formerly on UHF Channel KXLA 44 and earlier on KSCI 18. TV JAPAN: 24-hour satellite/cable broadcasting Japan Network Group, Inc., a joint venture of NHK public broadcasting and Itochu trading company groups. This is a subscription-based Japanese TV service available on DISH Network (EchoStar) satellite TV, not on DirecTV, and through limited number of cable TV systems. The original programs in Japan are arranged and broadcast 24 hours a day for North American viewers. (US) TV Listings: Zap2it.com Tribune Media Services (JP) Internet TV Guide Only in Japanese Listings of programs in Japan 'Asahi Shimbun' newspaper, a leading Japanese daily:
link to English version (now "Herald Tribune/Asahi")
Asahi Shimbun (also spelled Shinbun):
link to Japanese version.

'Nihon Keizai Shimbun':
Japan's leading financial paper better known as Nikkei
(English version)
Nikkei Japanese version. 日本経済新聞(日経) 'Mainichi Shimbun', Daily 'Yomiuri Shimbun', Daily Kyodo News: Kyodo Tsushin An Associated Press of Japan on a much smaller scale. In English, Japanese and Chinese. Also, links to many regional newspapers in Japan. The company is in the process of moving its headquarters from Toranomon area to Shiodome area (Shiodome Sio-Site, Shimbashi), a new business/shopping town which has been known as the birthplace of Japanese railway system. 'Rafu Shimpo' Los Angeles local Japanese daily newspaper L.A. News Publishing Company Japanese-American daily newspaper established in 1903 in Los Angeles. Close ties with the Mainichi Shimbun of Tokyo. Notes: "Rafu" is an abbreviated and old-fashioned way of calling Los Angeles based on the Kanji characters that are used to transliterate the city's name, just like San Francisco is sometimes called "Soko" or America is rendered as "Beikoku" as you know. Address: 259 South Los Angeles St. Los Angeles, CA 90012 (213) 629-2231 JapanToday: News/Discussions Web-based English-language newspaper published in Tokyo, Japan. Comprehensive Japan-related topics. Published by Mark & Mary Devlin's Crisscross KK. Their main news source is Kyodo News (Kyodo Tsushin). Japan Times Japan's leading English-language newspaper. Japan Real Time: The Wall Street Journal 日本リアルタイム "Japan Real Time is a newsy, concise guide to what works, what doesn’t and ..." Hiragana Times Good for beginning students. 'U.S. FrontLine News' New York-based bi-weekly magazine Their main audience is Japanese expatriate living in U.S.
'Nihongo Journal' 日本語ジャーナル Monthly magazine for Japanese language learners. The published ALC stopped issuing the magazine in 2005. Some back issues may be available. (dead link again) 'Mangajin' magazine The site of the legendary magazine is revived by Wasabi Brothers.
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Libraries
The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles Information Center
Formerly "Nihongo Library"
Library Hours:
Monday: Closed
Tuesday:  12pm to 7pm
Wednesday: 12pm to 4pm
Thursday: 12pm to 7pm
Friday:  12pm to 4pm
2nd and 4th Saturdays: *12pm to 4:30pm
* Make sure before you go.  Saturday schedules may change.

With a lbrary card called "JFLA Card", you can check out materials and 
use computers.
JFLA Card: $2.00 and valid for 1 year. 

New location since 2012:
The Japan Foundation, Los Angeles
5700 Wilshire Boulevard, Suite 100
Los Angeles, CA 90036

Los Angeles Public Library: Central Library
630 W. 5th St.
Los Angeles, CA 90071
(213) 228-7000
The International Languages Department
Japanese, Korean, Chinese; 
Arabic, Armenian, Czech & Slovak, Danish, Finnish, Dutch, 
French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, 
Lithuanian, Norwegian, Pilipino (Tagalog: Filipino language), 
Persian (Farsi: Iranian language), Polish, Portuguese, 
Russian, Serbian & Croatian, Spanish, Swedish, Vietnamese, 
Yiddish.

and

Little Tokyo Branch Library, LAPL
(new location)
203 S. Los Angeles Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 612-0525
Borrow Video tapes, DVDs and CDs in addition to books. Torrance Library Katy Geissert Civic Center Library 3301 Torrance Blvd. Torrance, CA 90503 Phone: 310-618-5959 Gardena Public Library Gardena Mayme Dear Memorial Library 1731 W. Gardena Blvd. Gardena, CA 90247 Phone: (310) 323-6363 East Asian Library, UCLA University of California, Los Angeles National Diet Library 国立国会図書館 (Kokuritsu Kokkai Toshokan) Japanese counterpart of US Library of Congress Address: 1-10-1 Nagatacho Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8924 Japan Phone: 03-3581-2331 Classical Japanese literature on the Web The Japanese Text Initiative sponsored by The University of Virginia Library Electronic Text Center and University of Pittsburgh East Asian Library. The Gordon W. Prange Collection University Libraries, University of Maryland Publications issued in Japan from 1945 to 1949: the immediate post-World War II years. Books, pamphlets, newspapers, periodicals, news agency photos, political posters, maps ... (US) Library of Congress The Library of Congress 101 Independence Ave, SE Washington, DC 20540 General Information: (202) 707-5000 The British Library 96 Euston Road London, NW1 2DB United Kingdom
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Government
The Three Branches of the Government

-- Executive Branch
Prime Minister: Sori-daijin (Shusho)
and 
his/her Cabinet: Naikaku

-- Legislative Branch
Diet (Parliament)
国会  Kokkai
House of Representatives
衆議院  Shugiin
and
House of Councilors
参議院  Sangiin

-- Judicial Branch
Courts
裁判所  Saibansho

Major Reorganization of the Central Government: 
January, 2001
Monbu-sho
, Education Ministry, is now
Monbu-Kagaku-sho.
The "notorious MITI" is now METI.
Major reorganization took place in January, 2001.
Compare the English and Japanese names of
the major agencies.

Video coverage of the Diet, Japanese parliament:
Kokkai
Japan's answer to C-SPAN, US Congress cable channel House of Representatives: Shugiin Streaming videos: Live broadcasting and video library House of Councilors: Sangiin Streaming videos: Live broadcasting Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP): 自由民主党 Jiyu-Minshu-to (Jiminto) Japan's new ruling party since September 2012. President: Shinzo Abe, now the Prime Minister. Former presidents: Sadakazu Tanigaki, Taro Aso, Yasuo Fukuda, Shinzo Abe (first time), Junichiro Koizumi, Yoshiro Mori, Keizo Obuchi, Ryutaro Hashimoto, etc. Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) Now 民進党 Minshin-to, formerly 民主党 Minshu-to Now the largest opposition party in Japan. President: Renho Murata Other promiment members are Yoshihiko Noda, Naoto Kan, Katsuya Okada, Seiji Maehara, Sumio Mabuchi, Goshi Hosono, Tatsuo Kawabata, Akira Nagatsuma, Banri Kaieda ... Ichiro Ozawa left the party in 2012. Yukio Hatoyama retired in 2012. Law Database by Somu-sho,
a Central Government agency
The Japanese Government is finally making the law available free to its people. Since April 2001, you can search for the constitution, laws, cabinet ordinances, ministerial ordinances and other regulations at this still lesser known site. Only in Japanese. No official English translations available. Prefectural and Local Governments: Chiho Jichi-tai Names of the Prefectures ("-ken", "-to", "-fu" or "-do") (Note: The order here is very arbitrary.) Kanto Region (Kanto Chiho): Tokyo, Kanagawa, Saitama, Chiba, Ibaraki, Tochigi Kinki Region (Not "kinky", also called "Kansai" Region): Kyoto (Bush administration does not seem to like this protocol.), Osaka, Hyogo, Nara, Mie, Shiga, Wakayama Chubu Region: Aichi, Nagano (Remember the Winter Olympic Games?), Niigata, Toyama, Ishikawa, Fukui, Yamanashi, Gifu, Shizuoka Tohoku Region: Miyagi, Aomori, Iwate, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima Chugoku Region: Hiroshima, Tottori, Shimane, Okayama, Yamaguchi Shikoku Region: Tokushima, Kagawa, Ehime, Kochi Kyushu Region: Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, Kumamoto. Ooita, Miyazaki, Kagoshima, Okinawa Hokkaido Region: Hokkaido (Yes, just one entity.)
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Jobs
"Metropolis" magazine
Weekly English city guide in Japan
Their "Classifieds" section is a good source of job information.
Part of the "Japan Today" network.

JET Program: Japan Exchange and Teaching
Work at local government organizations or high schools in Japan.

Working Holiday Programs in Japan
For Citizens of Australia, New Zealand, Canada, 
Korea, France, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Unfortunately, USA is not included in these programs. 
As they are reciprocally agreed-upon programs between 
the governments, there might be little chance for 
US citizens, particularly after the 9/11 incident, 
unless Washington loosened up its policy.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan site: 
www.mofa.go.jp

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Entertainment / Video Games
"Sudoku" number placement puzzle
数独
This game was published by a Japanese publisher Nikoli in Japan in 1986.

Animations and Comics: Japanese
Anime & Manga (graphic novels) -- Amazon.com sites
Amazon's DVD link
Amazon's book link
Amazon JP's anime video link
Astro Boy, Baikin-kun, Bomberman, Bust-A-Move, 
Card Captor Sakura, Cowboy Bebop, Cutey Honey, 
Devilman, Dinozone, Digimon, Doraemon, Dragonball Z, 
Dragonball Z Budokai (not "Budokan"), Dr. Slump, 
Evangelion, Gamera, GaoGaiGar, Ghost in the Shell, 
Giant Robots, Godzilla, Gundam, Hello Kitty, 
Jenny and Licca Dolls, Kamen Rider, Kikaider, 
Kinnikuman / Muscleman, Lupin III, Macross, Microman, 
Monster Rancher, Namco, Neon Genesis Evangelion, 
Neo Henshin Cyborg, Ojamajodoremi, Pepsi Man, 
Microman, Piyo Piyo, Pokemon, Princess Mononoke, 
Queen Emeraldas, Ranma 1/2, Rockman/Megaman, 
Sakura Wars, Saint Seiya, Sentimental Graffiti, 
Sanrio, Sailor Moon, Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi, 
Space Sheriff, Speed Racer, Star Blazers, 
Street Fighter, Tare Panda, Tatsunoko, Tenchi, 
Tokimeki Memorial, Totoro, Ultraman, Vampire Savior, 
Wacky Races, Yu-Gi-Oh, Zoids ...

Studio Ghibli
スタジオ ジブリ
Hayao Miyazaki 宮崎駿: 
the director of anime movie "Spirited Away",
the Best Animated Film of 2002, which has the Japanese original title 
"Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi" 『千と千尋の神隠し』
Partial Filmography:
-- "Kaze Tachinu" 『風立ちぬ』 (2013), aka "The Wind Rises"
-- "Gake no Ue no Ponyo" 『崖の上のポニョ』 (2008), aka "Ponyo"
-- "Hauru no Ugoku Shiro" 『ハウルの動く城』 (2004), aka "Howl's Moving Castle"
-- "Neko no ongaeshi" 『猫の恩返し』 (2002), aka "The Cat Returns"
-- "Sen to Chihiro no kamikakushi" 『千と千尋の神隠し』 (2001), aka "Spirited Away", "Miyazaki's Spirited Away"
-- "Princess Mononoke" 『もののけ姫』(1997), aka "Mononoke hime"
-- "Mimi wo sumaseba" 『耳をすませば』 (1995), aka "Whisper of the Heart"
-- "Kurenai no Buta" 『紅の豚』 (1992), aka Porco Rosso, "The Crimson Pig"
-- "Majo no takkyubin" 『魔女の宅急便』(1989), aka "Kiki's Delivery Service" 
Watch "Kiki" and master Japanese: an idea
-- "Tonari no Totoro" 『となりのトトロ』 (1988) aka "My Neighbor Totoro" 
-- "Yanagawa Horiwari monogatari" 『柳川堀割物語』 (1987), aka "The Story of Yanagawa's Canals"
-- "Tenku no shiro Rapyuta" 『天空の城ラピュタ』 (1986), aka "Laputa: Castle in the Sky" (1986)
-- "Kaze no Tani no Naushika" 『風の谷のナウシカ』(1984), aka "Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind"
-- "Space Adventure Cobra" (1982)
-- "Akage no An" (1979) TV series, aka "Anne of Green Gables" (1979) 
-- "Mirai shonen Conan" (1978) TV series, aka "Future Boy Conan" (1978)
-- "Haha wo tazunete sanzenri" (1976) TV series, aka "3000 Leagues in Search of Mother" (1976)
-- "Furandaasu no inu" (1975) TV series, aka "A Dog of Flanders" (1975)
-- "Arupusu no shoujo Haiji" (1974) TV series, aka "Heidi" (1977) (West Germany), "Heidi: Girl of the Alps" (1974)
-- "Panda kopanda amefuri saakasu no maki" (1973),
-- "Panda kopanda" (1972), aka "Panda! Go Panda!" (1972) (USA), "Panda, Little -- Panda" (1972)
-- "Sarutobi ecchan" (1971) TV series, aka "Ecchan the Ninja" (1971), "Ninja Girl Ecchan" (1971)
-- "Ari-Baba to yonjuppiki no tozoku" (1971), aka "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves" (1971)
-- "Dobutsu takarajima" (1971), aka "Animal Treasure Island" (1971) (UK)
-- "Himitsu no Akko-chan" (1969) TV series, aka "Akko's Secret" (1969) ......
...... Ghibli Museum: Mitaka-no-mori Jiburi Bijutsukan Animation museum of Hayao Miyazaki Address: 1-83 Shimorenjaku 1-chome Mitaka-shi, Tokyo 181-0013, Japan Phone: 0570-055777 (10:00 to 18:00) Managed by Tokuma Memorial Culture Foundation for Animation. Lonely Planet: Japan The largest travel guide book publisher in the world. --- JTB USA: travel agency site (US) All Movie Guide You can find some Japanese movies too. AEC One Stop Group, Inc. (US) Internet Movie Database: IMDb Movie database - allcinema 映画データベース Only in Japanese. Get info on Akira Kurosawa, Yasujiro Ozu, Hayao Miyazaki, Takeshi Kitano (Beat Takeshi), Juzo Itami, Nagisa Oshima, Masayuki Suo ... "Zatoichi", "Shall We Dance?", "Tampopo", "Tokyo Story", "The Ceremony", "Rashomon", "Seven Samurai" ... Ticket Pia チケットぴあ Only in Japanese. PIA corporation, the dominant ticket agency in Japan. Natsuko Toda 戸田奈津子 A leading film subtitles translator in Japan. Oricon Inc. Pop music info. In Japanese only. Ranking Charts: Singles, Albums; Karaoke, Enka ... (US) All Music Guide Part of "All Media Guide" Useful for Japanese artist lookup too. Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) RIAA's Japanese counterpart Taiko drumming: Kodo Cultural Foundation Sado Island, Japan National Theatre of Japan Japan Arts Council Kabuki, Bunraku, Noh, Kyogen, Engei (Rakugo, Manzai, etc.) Kabuki Theatre (Kabuki-za) Ginza, Tokyo, Japan Origami: the art of paper-folding おりがみ 折り紙 Instructions consisting of actual photographs.
Bonsai: dwarf trees 盆栽 Do not confuse "bonsai" with "banzai", roughly meaning "hurrah". Yamaguchi Bonsai Nursery Yelp reviews of the local store in the Sawtelle district. 1905 Sawtelle Blvd Los Angeles, CA 90025 (310) 473-5444 "Go" board game, also called "Goh", "Igo" 囲碁 Very popular in Japan, China, Taiwan, Korea and incresingly worldwide. Both in English and Japanese Japan Go Association: Nihon Kiin Tokyo Head Office Address: 7-2 Goban-cho Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8668, Japan Telephone: 03-3288-8727 The International Go Federation (IGF) link American Go Association: AGA Mailing Address P.O. Box 397 Old Chelsea Station New York, NY 10113-0397 Phone: (917) 449-8125 Shogi: Chess-like game very popular in Japan 将棋 Japan Shogi Association: Nihon Shogi Renmei Only in Japanese Headquarters: 2-39-9 Sendagaya Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-8516, Japan Telephone: (03) 3408-6161 Haiku / Senryu poems 俳句 川柳 Funny version of "Haiku" (5-7-5-syllable poetry) is actually called "Senryu" in Japan. To enjoy this type of humor, you need facility in idiomatic expressions and good cultural literacy in Japanese society. A Mainichi Shimbun newspaper site: updated daily. Small archives available. Annual "senryu" contests:サラリーマン川柳 (第一生命) An example: パパ似だと 言われ泣きだす わが娘 (美人妻をもつ夫) Notes: パパ似:パパに似ている look like your father 言われ:the passive form of 言う(言われる) 泣きだす:start crying 泣く+だす わが娘:my daughter, our daughter 美人妻:good-looking wife 第10回サラリーマン川柳ベスト10 Video Games & Computer Games Amazon.com page PC Games, Linux Games, Game Boy, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Mac Games, NES, Nintendo 64, PlayStation, PlayStation2, Sega Dreamcast, Sega Game Gear, Sega Genesis, Super Nintendo, Xbox (In Japanese) Video Games & Computer Games Amazon (JP) site PlayStation Sony's official sites Nintendo video games Online Games In Japanese only. Asahi Shimbun newspaper's Showbiz section It indcluds affiliated media's articles such as from the "Nikkan Sports" paper. A twitter account: Asahi Shimbun Team of Broadcasting and Entertainment.
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Sites of Interest
Snow Monkey Mountain
地獄谷 野猿公苑 (Jigokudani Yaen-Koen)
Wild Japanese Macaques sit in the warm waters of the hotsprings.

Shimaya Ryokan
島屋 (Shimaya)
Ryokan-type traditional Japanese hotel near the Snow Monkey Mountain.

Whitfield-Manjiro Friendship Society
11 Cherry Street
Fairhaven, MA 02719
Tel. 508-858-5303/508-995-1219

John-mung Museum
ジョン万次郎資料館
John-mung, also known as John Manjiro or Nakahama Manjiro.
303, Yorou, Tosashimizu-shi
Kochi-ken, Japan 787-0337

Tokyo Skytree
東京スカイツリー
A broadcasting/observation tower
Opened in May 22, 2012.
Height (antenna spire): 634.0 m (2,080 ft)

Tokyo Disney Resort
Tokyo Disneyland, opened in April, 1983
and 
Tokyo DisneySea, opened in September, 2002
Oriental Land Co., Ltd. 

Roppongi Hills
A new shopping complex opened in Roppongi area, Tokyo, in 2003.
Former site of the Defense Agency headquarters.
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Sports / Martial Arts
Sumo wrestling
Nihon Sumo Kyokai.  English/Japanese
Not "Somu wrestling"

MLB, Major League Baseball, Japanese players
Ichiro Suzuki
New York Yankees Formerly with Seattle Mariners. Hideki Matsui known as Godzilla Now retired. Formerly with New York Yankees. (Book)
"The Meaning of Ichiro:
The New Wave From Japan and the Transformation
of our National Pastime" (April, 2004)
By Robert Whiting The same author of "The Chrysanthemum and the Bat (1977)" and "You Gotta Have Wa (1990)" Major League Baseball: MLB Official (US) MLB site Some team sites have English, Japanese and Spanish versions. Japanese Pro Baseball official site Nippon Professional Baseball Organization: NPB Japan Karate Association : JKA 日本空手協会 Judo: Kodokan Judo Institute 柔道 講道館 Kodokan School of Judo Dojo events From enrollment to Black Belt (Kuro-obi) "Dan" promotion US Judo Federation (USJF) Links to USJF Club Sites. All Japan Judo Federation: YAWARA -- judo's informal name
Zen Nihon Judo Renmei (Zenjuren)
International Judo Federation Aikido World Headquarters Aikido: a martial art created by Morihei Ueshiba Kendo: Art of Japanese Swordsmanship All Japan Kendo Federation (AJKF): Zen Nihon Kendo Renmei (Zenkenren) Concept of Kendo, Books & Videos Office Addresses: 2-3-14 Kudan-Minami Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0074, Japan TEL 03-3234-6271 2-3 Kitanomaru-Koen (at Budokan) Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0091, Japan TEL 03-3211-5804 All United States Kendo Federation (AUSKF) Links to US Regional Kendo Federations
Search Engines Goo.ne.jp Number-one search engine in Japan for a long time. There has been a lawsuit against the owner of the similarly-named Goo.co.jp, an adult site.

Google.com This increasingly popular search engine worldwide is good at handling Japanese too. When you want searches in Japanese, make sure to set "Preferences" >> "Search Language" to "Japanese." Or alternatively, Google.co.JP: Google's Japanese site
Museums The Pavilion for Japanese Art Also known as Shin'en Kan
Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
Buddhist and Shinto sculptures Ukiyo-e woodblock prints from the Edo period. Prints from the Meiji, Taisho and Showa periods. Kimono. Netsuke miniature sculptures. Inro lacquer boxes. LACMA address: 5905 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, CA 90036 323-857-6000 Japanese American National Museum History of Japanese Americans Little Tokyo, Downtown Los Angeles 369 East First Street Los Angeles, California 90012 (213) 625-0414 National Museum of Ethnology , Osaka, Japan Commonly called "Minpaku", which is short for
Minzokugaku Hakubutsukan.

National Museum of Japanese History Sakura City, Chiba-ken, Japan Commonly called "Rekihaku", which is short for
Rekishi Hakubutsukan.
Note: The place name "Sakura" has nothing to do with
the cherry blossom.

Edo-Tokyo Museum Tokyo's history and culture Located in Tokyo, Japan, NOT in Little Tokyo, downtown L.A.
Japanese Gardens James Irvine Garden Japanese American Cultural and Community Center (JACCC) 244 South San Pedro Street (between 2nd and 3rd Streets) Los Angeles (Little Tokyo), CA 90012 (213) 628-2725 "Japanese Garden in the Sky", a rooftop garden The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Los Angeles Downtown Formerly "Kyoto Grand Hotel and Gardens" till 2012 Formerly "New Otani Hotel & Garden" till 2007 120 South Los Angeles St. Los Angeles, CA 90012 213-629-1200 Rock Garden: Sekitei Ryoanji Temple, Kyoto, Japan A large picture of the garden. A page of Kansai Institute of Information Systems. Rock Garden: the temple's own site Ryoanji Temple, Kyoto, Japan Temple's name is normally NOT pronounced as "Ryuanji". The site is in Japanese only. T-shirts with Japanese themes T-shirts: Got Sake? / Ochazuke? / Mugicha? / Natto?
License Plate Frames with Japanese themes too.
rotem gear / rotem design Los Angeles-based free-lance designer's site
Engrish.com "Japanese English" collections. Go ahead and make fun of our Engrish, you Americans.
Food, Japanese
SUMO CITRUS or Sumo orange: A new fruit from Japan
KPCC's news story (the "Take Two" morning talk show)
In Japan, this citrus is know as the largely genericized trade name of "Dekopon", デコポン, 
or the generic name of "Shiranui" or "Shiranuhi", しらぬひ.

California grower of the SUMO CITRUS
Suntreat Packing & Shipping Co.
Restaurants / Culinary Arts
Sushi Chef Institute: Tokyo Sushi Academy
Basic and professional classes.
Los Angeles, CA, Miami, FL, Atlanta, GA, USA; 
Tokyo, Osaka, Japan;
Paris, France.
Head Office Address:
927 Deep Valley Drive, Suite 299
Rolling Hills Estate, CA 90274
310-544-0863

Japanese restaurants in Los Angeles: Yelp reviews
Once there, choose the "Neighborhoods" such as
Downtown, Little Tokyo, West Los Angeles, Pasadena ...

Sushi, Tempura, Soba, Udon, Yakitori, Sukiyaki ...
Epinions' guide/reviews: Los Angeles Japanese Restaurants

(dead link) "SUSHI & TOFU" magazine
All Japan News
Japanese food, restaurants, things Japanese.

Iron Chef (foodnetwork.com)
a TV show produced in Japan that pits the "Iron Chefs"


Groceries

Mitsuwa Marketplace, formerly Yaohan
Mitsuwa Corporation

Mitsuwa Marketplace
Torrance Store 
21515 Western Ave.
Torrance, CA 90501 
(310) 782-0335

Mitsuwa Marketplace
Santa Monica Store 
3760 Centinela Ave. (at Venice Boulevard)
Los Angeles, CA 90066 
(310) 398-2113

Mitsuwa Marketplace
San Gabriel Store
515 W Las Tunas Drive
San Gabriel, CA 92111
(626) 457-2899
9:00AM - 8:00PM

Mitsuwa Marketplace
Costa Mesa Store
665 Paularino Ave.
Costa Mesa CA 92626
(714) 557-6699
9:00AM - 8:00PM

Little Tokyo Marketplace in the Little Tokyo Shopping Center
Now a Korean supermarket
(Formerly Mitsuwa/Yaohan)
333 S. Alameda St.
Los Angeles, CA 90013 
(213) 617-0030

Nijiya Market
Torrance store
2121 W.182nd St.
Torrance, CA 90504
(310) 366-7200

Nijiya Market
West LA store
2130 Sawtelle Blvd., Suite 105
Los Angeles, CA 90025 
(310) 398-2113

Nijiya Market
Little Tokyo Store
124 Japanese Village Plaza Mall
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 680-3280

Pacific Supermarket, formerly "Meiji Market"
1620 W. Redondo Beach Blvd.
Gardena, CA 90247
(310) 323-7696

Marukai Wholesale Mart: membership chain Marukai Corporation Marukai Main Store 1740 WEST ARTESIA BLVD. GARDENA, CA 90248 Phone: 310-660-6300 Marukai West LA Store 12121 WEST PICO BLVD LOS ANGELES, CA 90064 Phone: 310-806-4120 Marukai Little Tokyo Store 123 S. ONIZUKA ST. #101 LOS ANGELES, CA 90012 (Former site of Matsuzakaya department store on the Weller Court shopping mall) Phone: 213-893-7200 Marukai West Covina Store 1420 SOUTH AZUSA AVE. WEST COVINA, CA 91791 Phone: 626-430-0900 Marukai 98 Cent Store 1360 W. Artesia Blvd. GARDENA, CA 90248 Phone: 310-516-8160
Sister Cities (Shimai-toshi): US-Japan
Los Angeles: Nagoya, Aichi-ken
名古屋

Santa Monica: Fujinomiya, Shizuoka-ken
富士宮

Culver City: Kaizuka, Hyogo-ken
貝塚

Gardena: Ichikawa, Chiba-ken
市川

Torrance: Kashiwa, Chiba-ken
柏

Pasadena: Mishima, Shizuoka-ken
三島

Montebello: Ashiya, Hyogo-ken
芦屋

Monterey Park: Nachi-Katsuura, Wakayama-ken
那智勝浦

Glendora: Mooka, Tochigi-ken
真岡

Burbank: Ota, Gunma-ken
大田

Carson: Soka, Chiba-ken
草加

Long Beach: Yokkaichi, Mie-ken
四日市

ABC Unified School District (Artesia, Bloomfield and Carmenita):
Kakamigahara, Gifu-ken
各務原

Anaheim, Orange County: Mito, Ibaraki-ken
水戸

Newport Beach, Orange County: Okazaki, Aichi-ken
岡崎

Brea, Orange County: Hanno, Saitama-ken
飯能

La Mirada, Orange County: Isehara, Kanagawa-ken
石川

San Bernardino: Tachikawa, Tokyo-to
立川

Fairhaven, MA: Tosashimizu, Kochi-ken
土佐清水
Still More Links
Jim Breen's Japanese Page
Monash University, Australia
There a lot of broken links, still this is a useful site.

Keiko Schneider's Bookmarks
For those who study and teach Japanese and Japan. 
Japanese teachers and students.

Advanced Japanese Language School of Los Angeles
Nihongo.AdvancedJP.org
ロサンゼルス上級日本語学校
メール: AdvancedJP
でんわ:424-八三五-0771
ALL the willing students welcome:
Young or Old 
Women, Men (or Others) 
Bright or Not so bright 
East Asians or Non-East Asians 
Culver City, Mar Vista, Playa Vista, Venice, Marina del Rey, Santa Monica, 
Palms, West Los Angeles