I don't watch much anime.

Or much TV at all, really. A couple of weeks per year, I might do a bit of Netflix binge-watching (often in Japanese!), but that's about my only exposure to shows.

However, I do regularly study anime flashcards in Anki. Usually I can fly through anime flashcards quickly without much effort, so it makes for good, pain-free Japanese review. Also, it helps remind me that I can do something I was dreaming of doing for so many years--watching and understanding Japanese TV. So it's a motivation booster, too.

One show that I recently added to my repertoire is Flying Witch.

Here's the English Wikipedia page, and here's the official Japanese page.

Doing flashcards, it occurred to me that the characters speak quite clearly and use a lot of useful language, so I thought I'd share the first few minutes of the show with you....

↑　Video Link　↑

It was my first time actually watching the show, and the intro video made me very nostalgic about when I lived in Sapporo.

At the beginning, we see the main character, Makoto, riding a train out in the 田舎 (いなか // countryside).

I love riding in an empty train like that and looking out at Japan's beautiful landscape, preferably while listening to some awesome, chill music.

She then pulls into what seems to be a relatively large station:

This picture reminds me of just earlier this year. We were living near Shinagawa, in Tokyo. If you ever go, you'll probably notice that there are a ton of train tracks lined up like this. Well, many more than this.

The train pulls up, and we see all kinds of familiar sights. The platform and its yellow safety line:

The signs displaying various train times and which platforms to use:

And of course the ticket gates:

It appears that she is at a place called Hirosaki:

I looked it up, and Hirosaki is a real city in Aomori Prefecture (Wikipedia).

I found an eerily similar picture online...

And I found it on Google Maps!

Anyways, she heads for a village called Sōma (Wikipedia):

I've never been, but it appears to be around here:

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Anyways, let's put on our serious study hats and get to work.

If you haven't already, I'd try watching the video and trying to understand as much as you can.

Then we can look at each sentence one by one...

*Note: Below, the English translations are translations that I got online. In the next lesson, I'll comment on where, and how I do/don't agree with them 100%. None of them are incorrect, though. It's just nitpicky translation stuff that I like to nerd out on.

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次、止まります。
つぎ、 とまります。
Next stop requested.
Literally: "next + (will) stop."

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チトさん、見てください！
チトさん、 みて　ください！
Chito-san, take a look!
Literally: "Chito-san, + look + please!"

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四月なのにこんなに残ってますよ、雪！
しがつ　なのに　こんなに　のこってます　よ、 ゆき！
It's April, but there's still so much snow!
Literally: "April + なのに (=although) + this much + is remaining, + snow!"

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冷たい！
つめたい！
So cold!
Literally: "cold!"

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これ食べても大丈夫かな
これ　たべても　だいじょうぶ　かな
I wonder if it's safe to eat.
Literally: "this + even if eat + OK + かな."

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マコト？
Makoto?

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やっぱマコトだ。
やっぱ　マコト　だ。
I knew it was you.
Literally: "as I thought + Makoto + だ."

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久しぶりー
ひさしぶりー
Long time no see.

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もしかしてケイくんですか？
もしかして　ケイくん　ですか？
Could you be Kei-kun?
Literally: "perhaps [could it be] + Kei-kun + ですか？"

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大きくなったから誰か分かりませんでしたよ！
おおきく　なった　から　だれか　わかりませんでした　よ！
You've gotten so tall that I couldn't tell.
Literally: "big + became + because + who + か + did not know [understand] + よ！"

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ああ…
Right...
Literally: "Yeah..."

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で、なんで雪持ってんの？
で、 なんで　ゆき　もってんの？
So, why did you grab that snow?
Literally: "で、 + why + snow + are holding の？"

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これは…
これ　は...
Because...
Literally: "this + は..."

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なんでもないです
なんでも　ない　です
No real reason, I guess.
Literally: "(it's) nothing + です."

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よぉ～チト
よぉ～　チト
Hey, Chito!
Literally: "Hey + Chito"

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元気してたか？
げんき　してた　か？
Have you been well?
Literally: "well [lively; healthy] + were doing + か？"

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お前もデカくなったな
おまえ　も　デカく　なった　な
You've sure gotten big.
Literally: "you + も + huge + became + な"

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迎えに来てくれたんですか？
むかえに　きて　くれた　ん　ですか？
Did you come to pick me up?
Literally: "meeting / greeting + に + came (and) + gave (me) + んですか？"

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ああ、マコト方向音痴だったろ？
ああ、 マコト　ほうこうおんち　だったろ？
Yeah, I know you can hardly tell left from right.
Literally: "Yeah, + Makoto + (person with) no sense of direction + were, right?"

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うちまで辿り着けないんじゃないかと思ってな
うち　まで　たどりつけない　ん　じゃない　か　と　おもって　な
I figured you'd get lost on the way.
Literally: "house + until [all the way to] + cannot manage to reach + ん + is not + か + と + thought (and) + な"

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そんな昔の話をしないでくださいよ
そんな　むかし　の　はなし　を　しないで　ください　よ
That was a long time ago.
Literally: "that kind of + long ago + の + talk + を + don't do + please + よ."

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これくらいの道は覚えてますよ
これくらい　の　みち　は　おぼえてます　よ
I haven't forgotten how to get to your place.
Literally: "this much + の + way / path + は + am remembering + よ."

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さ、行きましょう！
さ、 いきましょう！
Now, let's go!
Literally: "OK / Well then + let's go!"

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千夏ちゃんにも早く会いたいです！
ちなつちゃん　に　も　はやく　あいたい　です！
I can't wait to see Chinatsu-chan!
Literally: "Chinatsu-chan + にも + quickly + want to see [meet] + です！"

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おーい！
Hey!

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うちはそっちじゃないぞー
うち　は　そっち　じゃない　ぞー
That's the wrong direction.
Literally: "house + は + that direction + is not + ぞー"

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That's a lot of sentences!!

Let's save the grammar stuff and breakdowns for next time. ^_^