Minasan,

I believe that learning a language opens the door to a country's culture without letting anything get lost in translation. I visited Tokyo and Osaka this past summer and I was very impressed. I cannot wait to go and experience Japan all over again, this time with the ability to communicate in Japanese. I thought it would be practical to learn Japanese considering its close proximity to my homeland, Seoul, Korea and my frequent visits to Japanese places in NYC. People from Korea often visit Japan for the weekend to play golf or ski. My profile picture on facebook was taken while I was on a private boat steering through the river in Osaka. I am very excited to learn Japanese and only wish I had thought of taking Japanese classes at Columbia sooner.