Nihongo to English

Send us Fan Mail Episode 14 starts with a very LA problem: “It doesn’t rain enough to casually say ame ga yamu .” From there, Michael Allen and Michelle MaliZaki jump into Genki-style grammar and nuance— yamu vs yameru , tomaru vs tomeru , and what changes when the “stopping” happens by itself vs when you stop something (Superman stops the Shinkansen, obviously). Then we go full language-nerd with...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Nihongo to English , hosts Michael Allen CPA and Michelle MaliZaki break down Japanese particle も (mo) from Genki I (Lesson 5) —how to use も to mean “also/too,” and how it can imply “among other things.” We also practice じゃないです (janai desu) vs ではないです (dewa nai desu) for saying “not” in Japanese, plus common beginner pitfalls (like stacking “also” a...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 12 of Nihongo to English No Show , Michelle MaliZaki and Michael Allen (CPA / comedic performance artist) bounce between English + 日本語 (nihongo) and dive into the Genki textbook to tackle one of the most confusing beginner topics: kore / sore / are / dore — plus the matching sets kono / sono / ano / dono and koko / soko / asoko / doko . Along the way: an audition cal...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 11 of Nihongo to English (No Show), hosts Michelle MaliZaki and Michael Allen tumble into Japanese shopping phrases , beginner-friendly Genki vocabulary practice , and a chaotic-but-useful roleplay that goes from the store… to the restaurant… to “wait, why is Mary going to the bathroom?” 😄 You’ll hear practice with essentials like kore / sore / dore , common shopping &...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome to 2026 — and our first 初笑い (hatsu warai) , the first laugh of the New Year 🎍 Nihongo to English hits Episode 10 with Japanese New Year traditions, language mix-ups, and joyful confusion. We talk oshōgatsu , bonenkai , and shinnenkai , New Year foods, long tamago jokes, karuta vs. hanafuda, and why the Japanese New Year lasts more than one day. Along the way, we confus...

Send us Fan Mail 🎧 Episode 9 Description Is a stripe the same as a border? (No. Definitely no.) In Episode 9 of Nihongo to English , comedians Michelle MaliZaki and Michael Allen CPA tumble into classic Japanese–English confusion while debating stripes, borders, and why English sounds so confident even when it’s wrong. Along the way, they snack on zebra popcorn, wander into euphemisms, sake cups,...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Nihongo to English (No Show) , Michelle and Michael learn Japanese the way adults actually do — through real conversation, mistakes, and a little sake. We dive into Genki textbook Japanese (pages 46–48), including school years (〜年生) , age counters (〜歳) , and the confusing but essential grammar pattern 〜ようになる (“to become able to do”). Along the way, we...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 7 of Nihongo to English (No Show) , Michelle and Michael dig into one of the most surprisingly fun language differences: animal sounds in Japanese vs. English . Why does a dog say wan wan instead of woof woof ? Why do cats go nyan nyan ? And what happens when you translate sounds instead of meanings? This episode uses onomatopoeia as a gateway into how Japanese actually...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 6 of Nihongo to English (No Show) , Michelle and Michael talk about New York through a Japanese cultural lens —and stumble into a surprisingly deep conversation about boundaries, politeness, and the power of saying no . What starts as travel talk turns into a lesson on how everyday experiences shift when language and culture collide. From New York energy and sensory ove...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 5 of Nihongo to English (No Show) , Michelle and Michael talk about Thanksgiving through a Japanese lens —and discover how food, gratitude, and cultural assumptions don’t always translate cleanly. The conversation starts with Thanksgiving basics and quickly veers into Japanese food culture , including inari sushi , leftovers, and what it actually means to share a meal....

Send us Fan Mail Just in time for October, Nihongo to English (No Show) gets a little spooky. In Episode 4, Michelle and Michael explore Halloween in Japan and the fine line between kawaii (cute) and kowai (scary) —two words that sound similar but live in very different worlds. Along the way, we unpack haunted houses ( obake yashiki ), folk spirits ( yokai ), and Japan’s deep-rooted obsession with...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 3 of Nihongo to English (No Show) , Michelle and Michael chase the kind of everyday Japanese that textbooks forget—like how to talk about paying utilities (コーネツヒ) —and somehow end up building a whole philosophy around ice cream, idols, and enlightenment . We look back at the early days of learning Japanese before Google Translate, when tiny paper dictionaries were...

Send us Fan Mail Counting to ten quickly turns into a comedy class as Michelle and Michael warm back up to Japanese and discover how easily being “rusty” becomes part of the lesson. From the art of 謙遜 ( kenson , humble deflection) to why shi sometimes becomes yon , we explore how numbers, politeness, and social instinct collide in everyday conversation. Along the way, we riff on Niigata senbei ,...

Send us Fan Mail Ever tried to learn a language by watching TV shows or listening to the news—and felt totally overwhelmed? This show is for you. In the first episode of Nihongo to English (No Show) , two comedians kick things off by talking about nothing in Japanese —and discovering why that’s often the best way to learn. We introduce ourselves, swap Niigata snow stories , and dig into the small...