About me

Name: Jonna

Nationality: Filipino

Location: Philippines

Watching anime on local television had been a significant part of my childhood. From World Masterpiece Theater shows, which were adapted from classic children's literature, such as The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Princess Sarah, My Daddy Long Legs, to those adapted from manga, such as Flame of Recca, Hunter x Hunter, Inu Yasha etc., I could say that at a young age, being exposed by lots of insanely good animes did not only taught me a lot of important things in life, it also shaped me as a person and developed my preference to Japanese content.

During my last two years in college, I started to be chronically infatuated with Japanese dramas that I realized I liked them better than animes. When I started working, a friend influenced me to try watching Japanese 2.5D stage plays and musicals, which I've immediately grew fond of, though if I were to ask which fandom I actively belong to, it is, without a doubt, in Jdrama.

Jdrama introduced me to Japanese literature and music. I've become a fan of Higashino Keigo and other authors whose works were not only adapted in Jdrama but also have novels translated in English.

What seriously made me consider studying the Japanese language was because of my hobbies and interest which were heavily inclined to Japanese entertainment and literature.

It was really frustrating that, unlike other asian dramas, not every Jdrama has English subtitles. The fandom relies mostly on passionate and hard working fansubbers and they are subbing on their free time because they want to, and it's not their full time job. As a fan, I could only wait for their subs while showing my gratitude for them by giving encouraging words and support on Twitter. (Though of course, when I earn more money, I am also planning to give back to them through donation or being a Patreon.)

Compared to Jdrama, I could say Japanese 2.5D stage plays and musicals are more niche, meaning less fans and more contents are untranslated. So unless you have good Japanese skills, it's hard to fully appreciate a raw stage play. What I usually do is I watch or read the gensaku or the original work first before I watch the stage play adaptation so I don't feel lost in their unsubbed lines. 

Meanwhile, Japanese novels are on a completely different level. Though I am beyond happy that unlike the previous years, more and more works are being translated in English, truth be told, it's still not enough. Moreover, the English-translated novels are not only hella expensive, they are also hard to purchase from local stores. I have to depend on online sites just to purchase these books which means I need to spend money on shipping fees. But that doesn't mean that if I could read Japanese, I can save so much money from just buying the raw books. It's just that, it is much more fulfilling to read the raw novel because it will allow you to understand the story more, which nuances and hidden or implied meanings cannot be translated all in English language. 

So I began to study the language all because I want to fully immerse myself with my hobbies. Luckily, there was a community in the company I work with that has volunteers who teach basic Japanese to interested employees. Because of that, I've managed to formally start learning Japanese for free. During that time, I was really glad that my hobbies helped me grasp the basics pretty quickly. I can already recognize several words and expressions and how and when to say it even before I study hiragana and katakana. After the class was over, I took JLPT N5 which I luckily passed. Because I wanted to continue learning the language, I've self-studied and eventually passed N3 as well. But after that, I got lazy and stopped studying for two years.

To get back on track, I started to self-study few months before the JLPT N2 which I took last July 2019 and the listening and kanji were so hard I think I will be retaking the exam on December. For that reason, I want to be more prepared and also, there was a really inspiring blogger who reminded me that I didn't study Japanese just to pass JLPT, it was because I wanted to use it for my hobbies!

I started this blog because I've read somewhere that journaling your progress in learning a foreign language does not only boost your motivation and productivity, it also helps you find fellow learners as well. So if in case, you are reading this because you are also studying Japanese language or is planning to study it, please don't hesitate to talk to me. I'd love to have friends who also share the same passion and/or similar interests.✩°｡⋆

About my blog

桜の吹雪 (Sakura no Fubuki) means cherry blossom blizzard.

Though the term normally used is 花吹雪 (Hana Fubuki), I specifically replaced flower with sakura or cherry blossom because whenever I study new words, especially kanjis, they were like thousands of cherry blossoms violently dancing with the wind, surrounding me until I get so overwhelmed I can't breathe anymore. And thanks to the fleeting nature of these flowers, the next time I knew it they are gone. Hahaha. The title of my blog pretty much summarizes my struggles in learning Japanese. (*´▽｀*)ｗｗ～

Regarding content, I will be documenting and tracking my novel reading progress here (either raw or English-translated novels). I will also post my book and drama reviews, and other stuff related to learning Japanese language.