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One day I had to attend a—I can’t remember exactly what it is called, but it was one these brain-washing, team-building things every company nowadays tortures their employees with. We started with a short introduction round—name, hobby, etc. Of course, everybody had model hobbies like hiking or reading or reading while hiking.

Everyone except this one Japanese guy, who said without any false modesty: “My hobby is drinking.”

So, he and I started drinking together. Regularly. Meaning almost every day. But in a totally responsible manner.

One thing led to another—or, to be more precise, drinking together led to cultural exchange—or, to be absolutely precise, he started drinking Russian vodka and I started learning Japanese. It was fun, but I wasn’t really making much progress in Japanese, although I was (and still am) quite committed to learning the language. Maybe I wasn’t focused enough though…

Thanks to Nihongo-Pro I discovered that one can learn Japanese without drinking! What a mind-blowing experience! Well, to be honest, with Araki-sensei we quite often talk about food and drinks, but so far we have managed to remain sober.

The most amazing thing though is that online Japanese lessons with Araki-sensei actually, really help. Before my first lesson I was, let’s say, a bit concerned whether I’d be able to understand anything, but right from the first minutes, Araki-sensei involved me in a conversation I couldn’t even imagine I was capable of. But by means of some voodoo magic (or maybe due to Araki-sensei’s experience?) all of a sudden I realized that I can be quite talkative, even in Japanese.

It has been almost a year since our first lesson. The only disadvantage of online lessons I have discovered so far is that one can’t drink together with the teacher. But collaboration technology and tools are rapidly improving, so I’m pretty sure the day will come when Araki-sensei and I will have an online Japanese class while drinking. Of course, in a totally responsible manner.

Kurokawa-sensei's curriculum is well thought out and is very custom just for me. She goes above and beyond to share cultural information relevant to Japan that supports the learning and dovetails with my specific interests. I can say that Nihongo-Pro is much more than just a Japanese language learning opportunity. A holistic approach that incorporates cultural context and nuance makes the experience even more fulfilling and mind-opening.

The technology of the custom online classroom is brilliant and works flawlessly every time! I love the automatic definitions in the chat box and the useful transcript that Kurokawa-sensei sends to me after each lesson. I use the transcripts to add Japanese vocabulary to my flash cards and explore concepts more deeply on my own. What's more, the streaming video is perfect and the sound is crystal clear. In my experience, it is superior to what you would encounter on most other remote learning platforms.

Thanks again to Kurokawa-sensei and Nihingo-Pro. I can't wait to learn more!