Friday 6 May 2011

Hashimoto kacho - do gen ne???

We Germans like the vernacular a lot, not only the Goethe and Schiller. So when I was in my favourite Izakaya last week drinking with my old buddy Kenji and his friends, he made me a nice suprise. I was very delighted when he offered to teach me some REAL Japanese as he called it. As opposed to the stuffy old fashioned Book Japanese I was speaking, that is, as he told me.

So while we was drinking and drinking and then drinking some more REAL Beer, I was shown the pleasures of some nice Everyday Japanese Words I had never ever heard before. But as Kenji and his friends assured me many times, no one was taking me seriously unless I used once in a while the REAL Japanese word sometimes.

Well, I did miss the last subway that evening and believe me, I had started to walk and talk slightly wobbly when the evening was ending. But since I am a quick learner, I had grasped some pretty nice words I wanted never to let go of again. So I wrote them up and memorized and memorized them every day after wards.

Imagine my pleasure and surprise when Kenji entered my office in the firm yesterday morning! He had been transferred that day to the main branch and I was soo happy to see him again. I cordially called out to him one of my newly learned phrases, namely "Oe Kenji - hisabisa da nee" (which he had always translated with "Hello Kenji my friend ... how very delightful to see you again". And since my superior Hashimoto san was entering too, I did not want to leave out the chance to impress him also, so I blurted out loudly "Hashimoto kacho - do gen ne?" which Kenji had always translated with "may I inquire about your well being?".

But the two suddenly became very silent and, I must say, very polite. Especially Hashimoto Kacho, that is. He told me, would I do him the great favor not to address him in REAL Japanese since he was not very much accustomed to its use, was what I understood. Hazukashiiiii ... ... Kenji told me afterwards that maybe the meaning of the phrases was a little more plain than he told me.

Anyway he said Hashimoto san is not from Hakata so maybe he cannot understand the Hakataben so well. So I took the next opportunity to apologize to him and I could see that he was pleased. And so was Kenji also, who told me to be a little careful in the future with those Japanese Words. I will handle them with care in the future I promised to him ... ...

But since I know that Takeda shacho was born here in Hakata, maybe I try some REAL Japanese on him when I see him next time ... ...

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