Thought I'd also drop in my 2 cents rather than start a new thread for this purpose.

I'm 26 years old and I live in South Africa (no I don't have a lion as a pet, I've seriously been asked that), studied Graphic Design and have a BA degree in Visual Communication. I think I've been a closet Japanophile for years now and never knew it until a friend of mine went to Japan on the JET Program last year. As soon as September rolls on by, I'm also applying to the JET Program with my boyfriend of 7 years. I hope we don't get placed too far apart OOPS! That reminds me... I NEED TO RENEW MY PASSPORT!

So far I'm studying Japanese with the Rosetta Stone package and I think it'll help me with the very basics, but I suppose it's way too early to tell. I'm also making use of Heissigs' "Remembering the Kaji" and "Remembering the Kana" as well as any other resources I can lay my hands on right now. Tofugu is crammed with helpful info on the Japanese language. I actually created a youtube account just so I could follow TJC and give "our man" my bit of support aswell.

I will try to keep track of all the steps I go through with the JET Program so I can give as many answers as possible to those who are able and interested in joining the program. I'm really hoping to get accepted to the program as it is something I really need right now. I also hope to be a helpful member of this forum, sooooo without further a-do....

Hello everybody!