Why I Started

I’ve always wanted to learn a language. It’s been on my bucket list for years, but I never really connected with the typical European languages taught in school like French or Spanish.

I have, however, always had a deep interest in Japanese culture. I’m a huge Pokémon fan and have surrounded myself with all things Pokémon for years. I’m also really into street photography, and Tokyo has always been a dream destination of mine. On top of that, I’ve been playing through the Yakuza series for the past couple of years, alongside being an avid enjoyer of the Ghibli films.

Almost one month ago (10th February 2026), I woke up and randomly decided I was going to start learning Japanese. It was one of those “why wait?” moments.

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What My Study Routine Has Looked Like

After about a day of research, I made a simple plan.

First, I learned the kana. I used JapanesePod101 videos on YouTube and learned 5 kana at a time, basically brute-forcing them using Tofugu’s kana quiz. It took me 4 days total — 2 for hiragana and 2 for katakana.

After that, I started:

• Anki (Kaishi 1.5k deck) for vocabulary

• Genki 1 for grammar and structured study

My original goal was 1 hour per day. After a few days, I realized that wasn’t enough for me personally, so I’ve been studying 2–3 hours daily.

Rough breakdown:

• \~30 minutes Anki (7 new words per day)

• 1–2 hours Genki every evening

In total, that puts me at roughly 60–70 hours for the first month.

I’ve tried starting immersion because a lot of people recommend it early, but even beginner content feels too incomprehensible right now. I’d rather build a stronger base in grammar and vocabulary first so immersion becomes more meaningful in the near-future.

During my 30-minute commute to work each way, I’ve began listening to TokiniAndy’s Genki 1 videos on YouTube. That’s felt like a form of “comprehensible immersion” since he explains things clearly and creates his own example sentences from content I’ve previously learned.

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The Hardest Parts

Overall, it’s been pretty smooth — but Anki without strong context can be tough.

For example, I struggled for weeks with する (to do) and くる (to come). I just couldn’t get them to stick. But once Genki covered them in Chapter 3, they suddenly made sense.

Kanji readings are also challenging, but interestingly, the more I fail them on Anki, the easier they become over time.

I also find that my reading is still very slow. I have no idea how long it will take me to speed up with reading, but I know with practise this will happen.

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What Surprised Me

Learning Japanese has been a rollercoaster.

Some days I get frustrated because I can’t recall a word I remembered perfectly one minute earlier. Then two days later, it sticks effortlessly and suddenly I feel like I’ve made huge progress.

It’s easily the most difficult thing I’ve ever studied because of the steep learning curve — but the payoff is incredibly satisfying. Seeing tangible progress, even small wins, feels amazing.

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Goals Moving Forward

Short-term (2026):

• Become faster at reading

• Start immersing with reading and listening

• Finish Genki 1 + 2

• Reach N4 level

Medium-term (2027):

• Read Kiki’s Delivery Service in Japanese

• Travel to Japan (hopefully Autumn 2027) and hold basic conversations

• Be around N3 level during my trip

Long-term (2030+):

• Move to Japan

• Watch Pokémon without subtitles

• Eventually reach true fluency

I’ll post another update when I’ve progressed a bit further.

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TLDR: 1 month in, ~60–70 hours studied. Learned kana, using Anki + Genki, struggling with vocab/kanji, riding the frustration curve, and aiming for N3 in the next couple of years.