November 6, 2004
An American takes on keitai
This week in Keitai Log, we get an exchange student's perspective on Japanese wireless culture. DesRochers, a Pomona College (Calif.) student, is studying Japanese at International Christian University in Tokyo.
Excerpts
[...] The process of writing keitai e-mails also brings forth another advantage -- the fact that keitai can turn hiragana (the Japanese syllabic alphabet) into kanji (characters that represent whole words). This means that while I'm standing in the middle of a crowded train platform desperately trying to remember the kanji for "Ikebukuro," I can simply begin to type it into an e-mail, and all of the kanji that match the phonetic spelling of Ikebukuro will immediately appear.
[...] As a foreigner to Japan, meeting new faces is part of the daily experience. Entering each person's data into my keitai as we part ways can be extremely helpful. Not only can I take pictures of their faces for their entries, but this process of exchanging information is also the appropriate time to clarify the spelling and pronunciation of their names.
[...] For me, owning a keitai has been simply another way to make the transition between complete outsider and "that foreigner who knows a thing or two about Japan."
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