I am presently visiting my company's office in Japan - my 5th visit.
I second the comment by patbernier about learning Katakana and highly recommend Hiragana as well. It will make your trip very interesting as every sign you see will stimulate you mentally as you try to read and understand.
Also knowing Katakana will be valuable for your shopping expedition.
I wrote a "flash-card" type of drill to help me learn Katakana and Hiragana. It is a "100% pure Java Applet" and available for use by anybody for free. The URL of the homepage is http://www.ChipChat.com/NihonGo/
The more you prepare and learn the more fun and exciting your trip will be!
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I second the comment by patbernier about learning Katakana and highly recommend Hiragana as well. It will make your trip very interesting as every sign you see will stimulate you mentally as you try to read and understand. Also knowing Katakana will be valuable for your shopping expedition.
I wrote a "flash-card" type of drill to help me learn Katakana and Hiragana. It is a "100% pure Java Applet" and available for use by anybody for free. The URL of the homepage is http://www.ChipChat.com/NihonGo/
The more you prepare and learn the more fun and exciting your trip will be!