JLPT

Since I came here I've, essentially, been without any solid goals or things to achieve. Of course I've had vague goals that I'd set out to complete ever since I decided to come on an exchange, but I kept feeling like I needed something to work towards and motivate me. As such, I've decided I want to try and sit the annual 日本語能力試験 (Japanese Language Proficiency Test). Essentially it's an annual exam held all around the world through which you can certify your skill level. There are 4 different levels, and I've decided to work towards Level 2, the second most challenging (I'm thinking Level 1 is impossible in such a short amount of time...).

The exam is held this December 2nd (That's right! The day before my birthday!) and actually costs about 5,500 yen to participate. Today I visited some book shops and purchased 3 textbooks (About 7,000 yen worth!) to help me prepare for it. If any of you other exchange students are planning on taking the exam, please share what books you've purchased/plan to purchase! I'm not sure if I got the best ones, but they seemed fairly helpful to me. One has some mock versions of the exam to work on as well as answers, another is purely kanji practice so I can learn about 1000 new kanji D: and the other is a grammar textbook I've been working on photocopies from.

Also today I finally purchased my new camera. As I posted earlier, the camera I brought with me was stolen (Partly due to my carelessness I guess), so I've been without one for a few weeks now. Today I bought the Canon IXY Digital 10. It's a fairly neat looking camera, and it's more powerful than the old one I had. Along with a 2GB SD Card it came in at about 40,000 yen. In other words, I spent a lot of money today. My wallet feels sufficiently lighter... (Or maybe heavier, since I think I gained a lot of shrapnel while losing a lot of notes).

I also should note I made my second visit to McDonald's today and can safely report that it is exactly the same as every McDonald's I have ever visited in Australia. Nothing exciting to report here :(

Today is 憲法記念日 (Constitution Memorial Day) in Japan - one of the many holidays that make up Golden Week. As the name implies it's to celebrate the day the new constitution came into effect and replaced the old Meiji Constitution. Golden Week continues tomorrow with みどりの日 (Greenery/Nature Day).