00:00
What's up guys, this is iYASASA RADIO by Akane and Minami.
In this radio, we are going to talk about random topics in Okinawan Japanese and English.
こんにちは。こんにちは。
イヤササレディオです。
ここでは、ウチナーイントネーションと英語で2人のインテリスティングなトピックスを紹介します。
イェーイ!
一回目、初めてのやつ。
So this is the first time we are recording our conversation.
And this is Minami. Hi.
Hi.
And so for today, we are going to introduce ourselves and also like who we are and how we decided like we are starting this channel.
And so...
はい、どうぞ。
あれね、あれ、あれだった。
Like when did we meet for the first time?
How we met.
No, so how we met.
How we met was, we met in university when we were like 19 years old.
19, 18, yeah, I forgot.
So we were in the same department.
Which is tourism.
Tourism and I also studied...
Marketing, management, kind of like that.
And then we had the same classes and we met.
And we were...
We had like same hobby to studying English and going to abroad and going to Tokyo for job hunting.
そうね、東京。
だからなんかいつも一緒みたいな感じ。
うん、like we did the same thing a lot.
Yes.
And also after we graduated university, we moved to Tokyo for work like what she said.
And we started working and...
But I went to Tokyo like a year ahead than you.
うん。
Because I was in university for like 6 years.
そうだね、小学生並みに大学に来た人。
だから、みなみはgraduated earlier than meだった。
確かに。
で、覚えてる?
Like, Akaneが...
When we went to Tokyo with Aya, we had like a lot of interviews in Tokyo.
And we stayed in your house だったよ。
My house? そうだっけ?
あ、ちなみに...
待って、Aya is her best best friend.
Aya is my like really bestest friend since high school.
So, I'm not the bestest だよ。
Bestest!
I'm not the bestest.
じゃ、ベストじゃないもん。
そうだよね。
だから、we stayed in your apartment for like a week だから、私たちは一週間、あなたのアパートに一緒に住んでいた。
and we went to Tokyo like 10 times. もう10回ぐらい東京に行って
Then I graduated and I moved to Tokyo. そして、私は卒業して東京に移った。
And then we lived so close. そして、私たちはとても近くに住んでいた。
Yeah, 2 stops... 3 stops awayとかの距離に住んで。
03:06
で、how long did we... で、どのくらい...
I was in Tokyo for 3 years. 私は東京に3年間住んでいた。
Then I moved back to Okinawa with my boyfriend. そして、2年前に私の恋人と一緒に東京に戻ってきた。
Okay, I skipped that part. そして、2年前に私の恋人と一緒に東京に戻ってきた。
2 years ago? 2年前?
2 years ago, yeah. 2年前、そうだね。
Then I changed jobs. そして、私は仕事を変えた。
From last year かな、I started going back and forth to Okinawa like once in a month. 去年から、私は1か月に1回ずつ東京に戻ってきた。
Once in a month. 1か月に1回ずつ東京に戻ってきた。
She stayed like a week, 2 weeks. 彼女は1か月、2週間、1か月に1回ずつ東京に戻ってきた。
Like, as long as I could. 私ができる限りの長い時間。
She always have like a vacation once a week. 彼女は毎週1か月、1か月の休暇を持っていた。
Vacation, but I worked every day, almost every day, like from home. 休暇だったけど、毎日は仕事をしていた。家から。
She can work everywhere with a laptop. 彼女はラプトップでどこでも仕事をしていた。
ラプトップがないと存在価値を失う人間。
Then from the corona quarantine started, I think we talked more over the phone.
You know, having a lot of conversation about career and private things.
Anything more like where we live or how to raise our kids in the future or not.
We have a lot in common. だから、
Like, we can talk about business, work and friendship and other relationships.
And studying English and any like random stupid things.
Everything. 共通点が多すぎるから。
だから、
We decided to record our conversation.
It's gonna be so fun.
And it's to remember like what we've talked.
And also, I think it's to maintain like our English skills or the brush up.
Since we came back from America, we don't have a lot of time to talk in English.
We mostly speak in Japanese, by the way.
And this is the very first time like we've been talking over 10 minutes.
We haven't talked that much, but we're getting there.
Like mainly we're going to choose the topic we talk or that we want to have a guest in the future.
Like a guest who can also speak English and Japanese and have an interesting background.
You know, like anything like we are interested in.
And then like an interview style.
Yeah.
だけど、
06:00
First of all, we want to introduce ourselves.
そうだった。
やばい、最初の話し続けた。
だから、
You guys don't know about us. だから、
We're going to talk about us today.
そうだね。
And next session, we're going to talk about any topics and news from Okinawa or anything like that.
And we're going to invite guests and talk.
って感じだよね。
Somebody is distracting. だから、
じゃ、ちょっと黙って。
アレクサ、アレクサ。
Please shut up. って感じ。
じゃ、はい。
だから今日は、
Please give me some questions.
今日はアカネの、
And answer anything about me.
アカネの紹介の回。
はい、どうぞ。
そうだね。
最初は、
I would ask you about like overall how you learn English.
About how I learn English.
Like for the beginning,
What made you want to study English?
Like maybe food or like some TV show or music or whatever.
Like what was the first point that you were interested in Japanese and English?
The first time I studied English was in a kindergarten.
I was in a Catholic school,
So I had English class with my teacher.
Then, you know, I had no idea what they're talking about.
Then, I...
My mom is also interested in English, but she can't speak.
Okay, okay. I didn't know that.
That's the reason why she, you know, made me to study English.
Instead of her.
Then I started going to English conversation class after school.
It was very fun with my friends.
How old were we?
No, no.
I was like 7 years old when I was in grade school.
Then, what I did in the school was having an English play.
Like Peter Pan and Alice in Wonderland.
Then, also I studied...
Writing?
Eiken.
Oh, Eiken.
I got Eiken 2nd grade when I was in 6th grade.
6th grade.
Wow.
6th grade.
6th grade.
When I was 12 years old, I got Eiken 2nd grade.
What?
That's so genius.
Because...
Wait a minute.
I don't remember, but I couldn't get it that fast.
You know, when you started studying English when you were really young,
your level, your English skills grow faster.
Than starting like later.
09:02
That's right.
But when I was in high school,
I didn't have much time to go to the conversation classes
because I was in a volleyball club.
I didn't know that part either.
I don't have any images like you are doing sports.
I wasn't playing, but I was a manager in a volleyball club.
I didn't have much time to go do something after school.
Then, that's the time I quit my school.
So, I studied a lot from elementary school to high school.
But I thought it was a little different.
I didn't like studying.
But I was having fun with playing.
So, my English skill is...
My speaking and listening skills are a lot better than writing and reading.
It's like the opposite of my story.
But then, when you grow up, you need to study reading and writing more
because you have Juken to go to high school and university.
That's why I started writing and reading at the time.
But I liked English because I was good at it.
Oh, I see.
What's the most... How do you say it?
12:06
It was a real conversation.
After that, I went to New York.
But I couldn't study English.
But?
It was totally different from on base in Okinawa.
It was a different kind of English.
So, you were at New York when you were 20? 21?
20... 22? 3? 1?
You were 21, right?
For how long?
For a year and a half.
Year and a half? That's long.
I went to the Fashion Institute of Technology.
A.K.A. FIT?
Yes, FIT.
The school for fashion business.
So, you didn't go to New York for studying English.
It was more of having a business?
Yes, it was a business major.
People who already can speak English are in class.
That's why I didn't have time to brush up my English.
Because people already can speak.
But that also makes you better.
It's not like you're studying, but you're kind of forced to get better in your language.
But the first few months I couldn't catch up with them.
Because their English is really fast.
And their vocabulary is more...
How do you say it?
They have more variety, I think?
More... how do you say it?
More... how do you say it?
How do you say it?
More professional...
Ah, technical terms?
That's why...
15:12
I see.
And?
And, that's it.
What did you study mostly at the fashion... FIT?
FIT is...
Does everyone know what FIT is?
I think only people who like fashion would know.
Say the name again.
Fashion Institute of Technology.
It's part of the New York State University.
Fashion Institute of Technology.
Yes.
Ah, there's also Japanese.
It's called the New York Fashion Institute.
Calvin Klein and Michael Kors graduated from this school.
That's cool.
Yes, but...
Ah, from the start?
Yes.
So, I went to the fashion institute, but...
After... what was it?
What do you call it?
I get it.
I didn't want to graduate school at the time, so I decided to go to America.
Ah, I see.
I wanted to go to America all the time, but I wanted to have...
How do you say it?
Like an extra experience?
Not only study English, but study something I wanted to.
At that time, I wanted to be in the fashion industry.
Why?
Because I really liked Victoria's Secret.
So, I found out that there was a Victoria's Secret head office in New York.
Wow.
That's why I wanted to go.
But...
I wanted to be an event director.
Because I liked fashion shows.
Isn't that interesting?
Yes, it is.
I wanted to do a Victoria's Secret fashion show, so I went.
I really didn't research about New York City.
As soon as I get there, I...
What do you mean? Like where to live?
Or like how much does it cost?
I actually didn't know New York is a big city in the world.
And they have like, you know, a lot of things from movies.
18:01
I didn't know that.
Really?
Yes.
Do you know what I mean?
Yes.
There's a lot of homeless people and big rats in a subway station.
And nobody, you know, have big house.
People live in a tiny house there.
Because it's too...
Expensive?
Yes.
How can I say?
Because it's a busy city.
You don't need a big house.
I don't need a big house.
And it was really cold.
Seriously.
It was the first time I saw snow in New York.
It was the first time I bought the coat and boots there.
Even though I didn't have much money.
For the very first time actual winter experience for your life.
And then, it was my first time to live alone.
Live my own in an apartment.
That should be so fun, though.
It was the first experience for me.
I really really missed Okinawa.
Because the shampoo freezes in the bathroom.
Really?
The window was open.
I was sharing a room.
I had like five roommates in the same apartment.
And they were Japanese...
One Japanese and two...
No, one Thai.
One Korean.
And one American girl.
She was from New Jersey.
And doing stripping.
I want to hear that story in another episode.
The story of the stripping girl.
It was crazy, but...
It looked like a lot of fun.
Yeah, it was like that.
It was a backstage job.
You know, the one behind the runway.
21:01
Yeah, yeah.
The one with the mic and running around.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And the models...
It looked like fun.
It was crazy, but I had to do it.
Because if you forgot to make them wear something,
you get in big big big trouble.
Like even one piercing or one ring.
Sunglasses, ring, and everything is very important.
So I had a lot of pressure.
So you experienced the internship for how many companies?
I joined the backstage team as an internship.
And I worked in...
What?
How do you say it?
What?
In Japanese?
In Japanese...
Athleisure brand.
Athleisure.
Athleisure.
Athleisure.
Athleisure.
How do you say it?
It's in Japanese.
They say it a lot in magazines.
Really?
It was a sports brand.
What's the most famous brand?
I don't know.
It's not something like yoga, right?
Nike?
It's kind of fashionable.
Fashionable outdoor wear.
I worked at a company called VPL.
That was made by a designer from England.
His name was Victoria something.
Do you like Victoria something?
No, it's just a coincidence.
I worked with a Japanese CEO called Kikka.
We did a lot of things.
We did a lot of chores.
It was like I went grown up.
You were completely ignored.
What?
You said you were a devil in a Prada, right?
Yeah.
Didn't you have a shorter name?
It was like that.
24:03
That was my school life.
Wow, that's deep.
I was so miserable.
I always had dinner at my job.
I was happy to eat Japanese food.
Japanese restaurant?
Japanese restaurant.
Main branch is in Kyoto.
Which is udon restaurant called Omen.
Udon restaurant called Omen?
Udon restaurant called Omen is in Kyoto.
The concept of the restaurant was like a rich Japanese home cooking.
Agidashi-dofu was over 2000 yen.
I put udon fancier than actual.
Udon is not fancy at all itself.
Kyoto branch is all about udon.
Omen in New York has any kind of Japanese food.
It's a restaurant specializing in udon.
We have udon, tempura, sushi, and sashimi.
Soho is a fashion district.
You'll see a lot of models and designers.
They want to eat healthy food.
Most of them are vegetarian and vegan.
That's why there are a lot of food like that.
There are a lot of Japanese people.
Like Ono Yoko.
Wait.
I wanna see Ono Yoko.
Wait.
I heard Utada Hikaru.
Baseball player.
Omen was like a secret place.
The main client was Calvin Klein.
Omen's client?
Every Wednesday he comes to Omen.
He sells Calvin Klein.
Not the brand.
The real one.
The real person.
The gay designer.
Wow.
She was talking about udon thing.
Suddenly changed to her internship job at Calvin Klein.
27:02
I was like, what?
He, Calvin Klein, came to your restaurant.
Yeah.
Wow.
They are Orusen sisters.
Sounds fun.
That's why Omen was fun.
Is it easy to find a part-time job without visa in the States?
No.
It was illegal?
Yeah.
But it was easy though to find it.
In New York.
Because when you go to big city like New York and LA, a lot of foreigners in town.
So, a lot of...
How do you say?
This...
Advertisers?
Hiring?
Wanted?
Yeah.
A lot of them.
Like, anyone can apply without a visa.
And then they give you a cash?
Yes.
But it's underground, so I can't say much.
But they are in Japan.
Yeah.
There are a lot of people like that.
It's hard to get a part-time job in the States.
Yeah.
Student visa.
When you have a student visa, you are not allowed to work legally.
Maybe it gets harder than before, I think.
If, you know, the person change.
Okay, so you went to New York and you came back to Okinawa after that.
And you started working in Tokyo.
What was the first job you get in Tokyo?
I'm doing a wedding planner.
Oh, the wedding planner.
Your current job.
Yes.
Not exactly a fashion industry anymore?
Yes.
Because after I graduated school in New York, I realized that I really like fashion.
But as a hobby.
My career vision is going back to Okinawa after all the experiences.
So I wanted to search some industry which is more suitable.
Working in Okinawa.
Wedding is a big business here in Okinawa.
Then I joined a company that has a wedding in Okinawa.
In Hawaii, Grand Valley.
But then, when I was in New York, my major was event planning.
So I actually studied wedding planning too.
Like decoration on the table, how to search the venue, how to coordinate all the clients.
30:02
So it was very useful that you, you know, internship experience in New York.
And then like, what?
Okay, I don't work in fashion.
Wedding planner in the States and in Japan is really different.
Okay, like what's the difference, mainly?
Mainly is...
In the States, all wedding planners are individuals.
Like they don't belong to a company?
They don't belong to a company.
They're freelancers?
Yes.
Okay.
But in Japan, most wedding planners join a company and doing restricted business.
Like they have limited option to offer their clients or...
Okay.
So you joined some company.
Japanese are more controlled by company.
But now I wanted to be a freelance wedding planner in Okinawa.
Okay, okay.
More American style.
So in that way, you can do whatever you want.
And then you have like unlimited option to suggest to your clients.
But...
What was it?
You were about to say something.
I was about to say something, but I don't remember what it was.
I've known you for a long time, but that we've been talking for this like 30 minutes is like...
I didn't know a lot of thing about you.
Like what you experienced in New York or like how you studied English is like...
It's something that we don't really talk.
I mean, we don't really need to talk in daily conversation.
So it was really interesting.
Okay, then I will tell you how I improved my English skills next time.
Okay, so you'll tell me next time.
See you in the next video.
Bye.
Bye bye.
