受講生5　女性

試験の進行

試験開始は指定時間より30分遅く始まり、試験時間は8分。その後1時間余り拘束され解散。担当の女性が3人ずつ、別棟のビルに連れていくスタイルで、集合時間までに来ていない受験者もおり、その人は飛ばしていくから混乱が生じると思った。現に自分の前の受験生はその採点用紙がなかったようだ。

試験の様子

左に外国人面接官（男）、右に日本人女性。女性は何も質問せず。外国人試験官は中年で、英国系か米国系が不明。発音があまり聞き取り易いタイプの人ではない。面接官までの距離は2メートルくらいで、遠からず、近からず丁度いい。

質問内容

（以下、J：日本人試験官、N：ネイティブ試験官、A：受験者）

N: What is your name and where do you live?

A: My name is.... I live in...

N: How do you get to Mt. Fuji from Nagoya?

A: There is a bus service that takes you to the 5th station of the mountain from Nagoya.

N: What place in Tokyo would you recommend to visit?

A: I would recommend Hakone. Hakone has a lot of hot springs, and you can enjoy nice views of Mt. Fuji and Lake Ashinoko.

N: How do you get to Nagano from Tokyo?

A: The Shinkansen is convenient. It takes about one and a half hours.

N: How do you get to Kyoto from Tokyo?

A: The Shinkansen is good, too. The trains leave Tokyo every 10 to 15 minutes.

N: Who was the last Shogun?

A: The last Shogun was Tokugawa Yoshinobu.

N: What kind of person was he?

A: He was familiar with things Western since he was small. He had to deal with the changing political demands of the time, and in the end, he made a crucial decision to revert the powers to the Emperor.

N: What place is good for skiing?

A: Hokkaido and Nagano are good. In Hokkaido, you can enjoy skiing on powdery snow.

N: Where can I enjoy snowboarding?

A: I’m not sure about exact spots, but you can make a day trip to Gunma Prefecture.

N: After Christmas, Japanese have New Year holidays. Where would you take your guests?

A: After 26th after Christmas, Japanese start preparations for the New Year. I may take them to Meiji Shrine, but since it is a famous spot and will be very crowded. If they hate the congestion, I would take them to a local shrine.

N: What should I be careful about when I take a bath?

A: You soak yourself in the water in the bathtub, but you have to wash your body outside the bathtub. Other family members use the same water, so don’t drain the water.

N: If you want to introduce some Japanese food to foreigners, where would you take them?

A: Well, there are sushi and tempura restaurants, but I would take them to a kaiten-zushi restaurant.

N: That’s all.

試験を終えて

最後は回転寿司に連れて行くと言ったところで唐突に終了して退席。最後に、ガイドになる心構えなど聞かれるかと用意していったが、あっけない幕切れで日本語での質問はなかった。きっと8分経ってしまっていたのだろう。

毎日江口先生のブログを見て読んで、直前までDan先生の「鵜飼の説明」など急いで暗記していったのに拍子抜けです。こんなんでいいんでしょうか？他の受験生もそう言っていました。

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