Rocket Japanese Premium Review + Giveaway! #rocketlanguages

Disclosure: I was not monetarily compensated for this review. I received a complimentary access to test/review/evaluate the site and its service and product. My opinion and findings are 100% mine and may vary from yours.

It feels good to refresh myself in Japanese as this is the first foreign language I have learned while I was in college. It was part of our curriculum. And for 3 years, it was a part of my daily communication at the university. However, I haven't been speaking, hearing, writing and reading Japanese since I left school and that was many years ago. I am so rusty now that this Rocket Japanese gave me another boost in confidence to refresh myself and pick up where I left off.

Rocket Japanese is an interactive online learning resource to learn and speak Japanese fast. It is an exclusive online site for members who can engage in audio and visual learning and also communicate with other members thru forums.

What I like:
It is interactive. You can learn via audio or thru conventional lessons of reading There is also an option where you can do the role-play and record your voice so you can check vis-a-vis the audio lessons for a certain module.

You can download the audio and learn at your own pace and time.

There is an option where you can record your voice so you can compare it with the actual audio lessons.

There are several tests to take to gauge your knowledge level. The tests are designed to reinforce learning and memory retention of the lessons learned.

Aside from the very dynamic features and interactive interface of the site, Rocket Japanese also has a wide variety of articles accessible to all members about advanced learning techniques and tips.

There is a tracking section in the dashboard for your progress and badges earned, giving you the motivation to carry on and finish the entire lesson.

This is the dashboard area where you can find your progress and the lessons you will cover for the whole duration of the learning process.

The site is also accessible 24/7 and is compatible with Windows-based PCs, Mac, Android and iOS systems.


What I don't like:
I find the interface "wordy." I wish there were more images and / or flash cards for the benefit of those who learn faster with visuals.


Price:
Please check the site below for pricing as it varies depending on how many levels you want to avail.

http://www.rocketlanguages.com/?language=japanese#courses-and-pricing


My recommendation:
Given the many available resources provided to members and how the audio (as spoken by Japanese sounding people) helped me refresh and learn fast some basic phrases in Japanese which were enough to get me started with a basic Japanese conversation. I give this learning site my thumbs up!

You may check Rocket Languages in their social network sites too:

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialRocketLanguages
https://twitter.com/rocketlanguages

And now, for the best part of this review - THE GIVEAWAY!!!

I will be posting about the giveaway in another article. So watch out for it!

Wednesday Anime - Axis Powers Hetalia Part 1 - France/Francis

This segment in my blog has been dormant for sometime because my daughter and I have been too busy with other stuff. Now that she is going back as an anime-freak, I have given this Wednesday meme to her to write about.

So, welcome the first post of my daughter's Wednesday Anime series. She will be writing articles about her favorite anime characters and shows.

Here's the first post for the series:

(Photo credit: hetalia.wikinet.org)

Axis Powers Hetalia is a Japanese webcomic created by Hidekazu Himaruya. The comic centers around the historical  happenings during World War II  and  gives history  a comedical outlook.  The series  involves anthropomorphic representations of the world's nations,with the storyline jumping  from  pre-historic WWII to modern day. The  anime is very  stereotypical  with  the characters and  it  may  be  offensive to others but it is definitely a  humorous and would make history classes less boring and more interesting!

Today, I am featuring one of the main characters of Hetalia: France.



Basic Statistics:
Name (Human name): France/Francis Bonnefoy
Age (by physical appearance): 26
Gender: Male
Birthday: July 14
Hair Color: Blond
Eye Color: Blue
Height: 175 cm (5’9”)

Appearance:
He has shoulder-length blond hair, blue eyes and a slight amount of facial hair which he believes makes him look like an "*onii-san." His facial hair represents the Gorges du Tarn, or Tarn Gorges, that he’d been growing since the late 18th century (and yet he looks like he isn’t a day over 20…) He wears a long blue coat with matching caplet, red pants and brown boots, even though it has been said by both England and America that he sticks out like a sore thumb dressed like that. (His reason was that he looks fashionable and that the others’ outfits look like trash…oh France, you.) He is depicted, if not often, with a rose (which inadvertently is also used to censor his genitals when he goes out nude)

Personality and Interests:
Francis was once considered a large nation, but after the death of Napoleon Bonaparte, he became useless during wars and instead used wine to attract tourists top his country. He has a very intense rivalry with England, and enjoys fighting with him over trivial things like “who is more perverted amongst the two of them”. His hobbies are agriculture, fashion design, sketching, singing, manipulation activities and wandering around art museums and fashion boutiques in Paris, especially odd or chic places.

Photo credit: hetalia.wikia.com

Francis is infatuated with most of the nations and is well known for seizing every opportunity to make inappropriate innuendos and showing his affections, often by streaking or being touchy-feely.  He is very attracted to beautiful things. He said “be gentle to the ladies and be gentle to the earth.” Is his motto. He admits to being “the dandiest among the dandies”. And he loves himself so much that he doesn’t even bother to learn or remember English and considers French the “language of love”. In addition to that, he refers to the others as insignificant characters to himself.

Stated once that he’s afraid of computers (even though he isn’t intimidated by other technologies), Germany (and claims that he hates Germans in general, despite the fact that he gets along well with Germany and Prussia as of late), Russia, Switzerland (as he would shoot him down if he passes over to Swiss territory), an angry England and quite possibly, Turkey. It seems that gardening relaxes him along with reading Japan’s new manga(s).

He’s referenced his old age several times, saying things like how his waist is always creaking; his back hurts and had to surrender to sleep early in the day. Although, he gets very upset when he is called a grandpa as opposed to a big brother (a self-proclaimed title) and claiming he is still young.

He also holds a belief that those who have been “toyed with history” are always reborn, but into a normal life and get to live regular, happy lives. He manage to confirm this when he met a girl, during the modern century, named Lisa who had come to France for her birthday, which he believed to be was the reincarnation of Joan of Arc.

(Notes: *onii-san means ‘older brother’ or ‘big brother’ in Japanese)

Arice215

My Giveaway Logo

My daughter is so talented. I never knew she was this good, as in really, really good! I asked her to create a logo for me from scratch. Of course, my preferences where given and she asked me for clarification and voila! Here is the outcome:





Wow! I just told her I wanted the momiji kind of characters and there should be cherry blossoms on the side and of course, it should be Japanese-themed because I love Japanese!

She's only 14 but her skills are really beyond her years. I think she will fair very well in graphics and animation. I love my giveaway logo simply because it's beautiful and so me and lastly, my daughter created it from scratch. What a kid!

My Daughter's Anime Plushies

My daughter is really crafty. She moved from polymer clay to painting to drawing to stitching Japanese anime characters' plushies. She loves working with fabric felt and I must have bought her several colors already.

Her plushies are 6 inches tall and stuffed with recycled fabric fillings from old pillows that we threw. She stitches all of these with her hands and uses various colors of flosses and big needles.

Her friends and classmates ask for their favorite Japanese anime character which she transforms into cute plushies. She can also customize a plushie doll according to the preference of her friends and classmates.

So far, she has made more than a dozen of the plushies. Some she gives as presents and others she sells. My daughter is earning on her own! I guess I can stop working now :)

Here are the most recent plushie project she has done. Aren't they cute?

Japan's Quake Aftermath

As of this time, we still don't know the full extent of the off-shore quake that hit Japan today in the afternoon, local time.

We are keeping tab of the events as they unfold on TV and crossing our fingers and praying so hard that family and friends and everyone in Japan right now will be all right.

The tsunami swept through the northern part of Japan which is mostly an agricultural and fishing sector of the country. The quake hit around afternoon on a work day. That meant, farmers were on tending their fields and fishermen were on shore for a catch. The area is densely populated but there will be casualties involved if you have seen the raw footages in CNN and other news agencies.

If I lived there, I would let go of everything material, the house, the car, the things I have worked hard for to live. If I survive a calamity as serious as that, I won't even worry about any motorhome repair, dirty house, ruined vehicles and lost valuables. What is most important now is the right to survive.

My prayers go out to every Japanese people. May this trying times bring all of us together in faith.

Wednesday Anime - Whisper of the Heart

This is a story about two school kids whose friendship blossoms into young love. Shizuku, the main character of the movie is a young school girl longing to discover her true talent. She met a fascinating character in the form of a chubby cat riding the metro on its own. She followed the cat and the story of her young love evolved from there where she met Seiji, a mysterious young lad and The Baron, a cat figurine who helped her listen to the whisper of her heart.



(photos from Online Ghibli)

Wednesday Anime - Sailor Moon

I have watched this series a long time ago and remember the main character, Usagi Tsukino as the girl with the blond and long pony tails.

The story is about a middle school girl who began to have powers after talking to a cat named Luna. Usagi defends the world in the form of Sailor Moon. At first, she was reluctant and quite immature as she wanted to be just a normal girl. Later on, she learned to embrace her powers and fight the world's nemesis from the Dark Kingdom.

Wednesday Anime - Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch

My daughter is a fan of this manga series which she follows religiously. She knows every character in the series and knows exactly what's happening (surprisingly, when I ask about her homework, she gives me a puzzled look...hmmmm). She even knows the theme song by heart in Japanese! Ask if she knew what it meant, she'd say she loved the melody and all and just mimics the lyrics. Oh kids!

Anyway, going back to the anime my daughter loves, this is a series of a bevy of mermaid princesses who later discovered that they have powers. The main star of the series is Lucia who is a mermaid princess who fell in love with Kaito who is a human (which I think is not 10o% human...my daughter won't tell!). She took the form of a human to be with Kaito who she loved while Kaito continues to love the mermaid form of Lucia unknowingly.

It's like the story of the Little Mermaid but here, Lucia cannot tell Kaito that she's the mermaid who saved him because she'll turn into foam.

The story is geared in the mahou shoujo (magical girl) genre.



(photo from: freeweb)

Wednesday Anime - Kiki's Delivery Service

Kiki's a young 13-year old witch in a small town who left home as a witch-in-training. She needs to complete this training for a year and has found the town of Koriko her next abode. Her stay in Osono found her establishing a delivery service. She met a young boy named Tombo who showed her around the city on his bike. She met a lot of characters along the way which I think helped build the story of a "non-antagonist" theme. The story's central gist is personal growth and self-realization.

I find this story very intesting and with values to tell. Kirsten Dunst voiced Kiki in the English version and Phil Hartman as Kiki's cute, little black cat named Jiji.

(Photos from: Studio Chibli)

Wednesday Anime - the initial write up

I am an anime lover. Well, not exactly that avid where I can tell who is who. I love Japanese cartoons especially the old ones like Candy-Candy, Voltes 5, and others which titles I have forgotten already. I grew up watching these old Japanese anime and up to know, I still remember most parts. As a tribute to my growing fondness on Japanese animation, I will be featuring anime trivia every Wednesday. So, if you have any anime characters in mind who you would like to be featured or would like to know more about them, do let me know so I can scour my treasure box of Japanese anime ;) A word of caution though, I will not be featuring animes that I deem not worth featuring. Anime lovers out there will know what I mean.

Watch out for some anime trivia in this space very soon!

Domo arigato gosaimasu!