Things to come! We’re coming up with new ideas all the time, and video is one of them. It makes for a better immersive experience, and we’ll be doing a lot more street-style videos, interviews, lessons and more. Stay tuned!
Tag Archives: japanese
iPhone 4S Siri Japanese vs Shabette Concier
I found this cool video while doing some research on the next iPhone – am considering getting a 4S or a Droid at the moment. Also have been sort of looking forward to iPhone 5 – however not sure when it will be released. If anything though, I am in the market for a new phone as my contract is up. One of the things I like about the new iPhone 4S is Siri – and as of late, I’ve heard that now Siri can be talked to in Japanese.
(↑ Watch the video now)
Questions Asked:
| Question | Siri Response | Shabette Response |
|---|---|---|
| Konnichiwa – Hello | “Konnichiwa (Hello) it’s 11:56AM.” | “Konnichiwa!” |
| Is it cold outside? | It’s not too cold, 8°C (42°F) | (Just shows weather) |
| My stomach hurts.. | (Siri doesn’t get what was asked) | (Shabette just delivers some web results) |
| Can you tell me my schedule tomorrow? | (Siri shows a blank schedule) | (Shabette shows him he will be surfing at 6AM tomorrow) |
| Can you give me a map of Chigasaki (city)? | (Siri says that the ‘maps’ feature is available for English users only) | (Shabette gives a map of Chigasaki) |
| Show me a video of ‘Kyari Pamyu Pamyu’ | (Siri asks if he wants to a see a websearch for ‘Okyariba’ video ) | (Shabette shows him the correct videos) |
| Raw Wheat, Raw Rice, Raw Eggs (Tongue Twister) | (Siri asks him if he has better things to do with his time..) | (Shabette asks if he wants to see web results) |
| I want to make some Curry Rice! | (Siri doesn’t understand what I want to make some Curry Rice means) | (Shabette shows him a recipe of how to make it – girl in the back seems impressed) |
| Thank you! | “Thank you for your kind words..” | “Aww, shucks” (embarrased) |
| Night! Please wake me up tomorrow | What time would you like to set the alarm for? | Setting the alarm for tomorrow, 3-11-2012, at 10AM |
Naturally, I wanted to see how Siri sounded in Japanese, so I did a search and came across this video on Youtube. The tester, probably a native speaker – pits Siri against a Japanese competitor version of Siri made by the Docomo group called ‘Shabette Concier しゃべってコンシェル‘.
In the video, the native speaker asks both Siri and Shabette Concier a series (no pun intended) of questions to determine which software performs better in terms of response. Unfortunately for Apple, it seems like Siri probably needs to spend a little more time getting to know Japan – for now she comes across more like a ‘gaijin’ (foreigner) who seems unfamiliar with pop culture things like curry rice and Kyari Pamyu Pamyu.
I guess you could say though, part of Siri’s charm is having that sassy ‘attitude’. As one of the comments on that video suggested, perhaps Siri is a ‘tsundere‘. Even though Shabette comes across ‘cuter sounding’ – sometimes you just appreciate the woman who takes control 
.
Saying I love you to Siri - unfortunately she doesn't really get the concept nor does she want the attention lol
“Arigato from Japan”
On March 2nd, I went to the “Arigato from Japan” appreciation concert in Los Angeles, presented by the Consulate-General of Japan in Los Angeles and the Japan Foundation, where we watched performances by the Tohoku Folk Performance group and the world famous Ondekoza taiko group and other musicians.
I’ve always wanted to see Ondekoza perform, ever since going to Kodo’s “One Earth Tour” concert. The original Kodo members were all part of Ondekoza at first, until they split from Ondekoza to make their own group. Kodo remained in Sado Island, while the founder of Ondekoza moved to Shizuouka prefecture to continue Ondekoza. So seeing the roots of Kodo was very exciting, especially watching the performers playing on their Oodaiko (large taiko) on their well known yagura (the platform that the oodaiko is played on).
Below, you can see both Ondekoza’s and Kodo’s Oodaiko on their Yaguras. They may look the same, but the Chouchin (Lanterns) have the name of each group written on them.
Ondekoza's Oodaiko on their Yagura
Kodo's Oodaiko on their Yagura
In addition to the awesome taiko drumming, there was a nice clip that was shown at the beginning of the concert. The clip summarized the devastating events that occurred on March 11th, 2011 and then showed the progress Japan has made since the disaster. It’s a nice heartwarming clip, especially for those who have contributed to any of the relief fundraisers for Japan. I’ll post a link to the clip below and hope you all enjoy it.
I love taiko drumming and there will be a performance by Kishin Daiko coming up at the end of March at the East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center’s annual Chery Blossom festival, so expect more posts about taiko from me soon! =)
Happy March everyone!
Vocab of the Day 2-2-12
Vocabulary time! Do you know the meaning of this word? How about the reading?
Do you know the meaning? How about the reading?
Last time’s vocabulary:
Vocabulary |
Meaning |
Reading |
|---|---|---|
競馬 |
Horse Racing |
けいば |
The word 競馬 means ‘horse racing’. Have you ever been to a horse race? Apparently けいば is a popular means of gambling in Japan. Check out the video below featuring AKB48 performing for the Tokyo Horse Races Stadium:
As usual, we’ll post next time’s answer with the new vocabulary. If you think you know the answer, leave a comment 
Human Pyramid Failed
Hi everyone!
So this is my first post as a new contributor of Ganbare! Japanese and I am happy to be part of the team!
For my first post, I’d like to share a video of my friends attempting to do a 5-4-3-2-1 human pyramid for our friend’s birthday tradition. Everything was going well…until the very last cap of the pyramid. As you will see in the video, it was quite a painful failure.
But in the end, and after a couple more attempts, we successfully built a 5-4-3-2-1 human pyramid with our happy birthday boy on top!
Happy birthday again Yuno!