Thursday, August 26, 2010

にほんご 101

こんにちは、 みんねーさん!
カバフグ です。 どうぞ よろしく :)

Hopefully that says, "Konnichiwa minna-san. Cabahugu desu. Doozo yoroshiku."
If not, then... hey, I tried.

My name is Ninabeth Cabahug, but you can just call me Nina. If you must question the pronunciation of my last name, then let me say one thing: It sounds like CanIHaveAHug? really, really fast. And if you ask me that, I'll probably respond with a "Yes." Haha. I've studied Spanish for the past 4 years, so forgive me if you speak to me in Japanese, and I'll end up responding in Spanish because my brain is still in Spanish mode. Like Buzz Lightyear. Anyway, I'm going to be a premed student here at Notre Dame. I'm not particularly sure if I'm majoring in Biology or whatnot yet, though I'll make up my mind eventually. My goal is to make it to Harvard Medical School and become a cardiologist that will somehow change the world.

Big dreams, small person. ;)

Although I do not look the part, I am Filipino, and I speak Cebuano, a dialect of Tagalog, fluently. I was born in the Philippines, moved to New York City when I was 7, and then moved to Las Vegas, NV when I was 13. I'm a big-city girl, so this whole transition into the sleepy town of Notre Dame, IN will be a bit shocking and (hopefully not) boring to me.

The entire country of Philippines has a wild obsession with Korea and Japan, and if I absolutely had to answer, this is where my interest in Japan started. There was always the anime and J-doramas and Pocky and Ramune and sushi and every other delectable Japanese export, but above else, I think I'm in love with the fashion. My reason for taking this class is to 1) challenge myself, 2) learn a completely different language with THREE completely different alphabets, 3) go to Sophia College and 4) shop in Harujuku. This will be great. :P

8 comments:

Margaret Pickard said...

I know what you mean about feeling like you're still in Spanish mode! Only for me, it's Spanish AND Chinese :( And if you ever get tired of little old South Bend, you can hop on a train on the weekend for Chicago :) $22 for a round trip!

Hana said...

かいもの(shopping)が すきですか?(do you like...?) はらじゅく should be a fun place.

Fiora said...

Can I have a hug? :)
The big dreams are the best ones. がんばって!Do your best!

ndjapaneserh said...

nice toy story reference haha. I have the same problem with spanish and japanese! when I started taking spanish again in middle school instead of japanese, i would often accidentally use the japanese word when i couldnt think of the spanish word; my spanish teacher thought I was trying to make up words

Ninabeth Cabahug said...

Ah, I'll give you a hug tomorrow Fiora-san :) Just remind me.

Oh, Spanish. Well, Cebuano is pretty much half-Spanish, so I have to sort through 3 different languages in my head before I even get to the "Japanese" section of my brain. D:

Yes, I love to shop and the whole Asian fashion scene. I'd love to just go on a free-for-all in Harujuku :D

Kyle Kimler said...

This is very funny, I know exactly what you mean about the Spanish (I was even thinking about taking Spanish and Japanese at the same time!) But I love Japanese just as much. I'm a bio major and I have been talking over the phone to a guy who's an alumni here, was a biology major/premed student, and who has been helping me decide my major as well! So maybe I can relay some advice to ya sometime? By the way... Harajuku is awesome!

Ana Christian said...

Oh boy, count me in for that shopping trip in Harajuku!! I love the fashion scene there, it's so original and unique, you can't find anything like it anywhere else.
Also, WOW I really admire your ambition. Harvard medical school, that's really impressive. I hope you make it! がんばって!

トマソン said...

I laughed when you quoted Toy Story 3 about Buzz Lightyear's "Spanish mode." What is your favorite えいが?えいがを いつじゅうで いきます?

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