Japanese to English Translation: Menu Translation
Information: pukutto Cafe
Open Hours
【Monday～Saturdays】11:30～21:00
【Sundays】12:00～18:00
Address 3 Chome-5-11 Ōkurayama, Kōhoku-ku, Yokohama-shi, Kanagawa-ken 222-0037
Stations 3 min. on foot from Okurayama Station
Japanese Menu
English Menu
10 tips to enjoy freelance translation
Translation can be lonely. You spend hours of hours at home starring at your screen and working on your project. If you enjoy talking to your coworkers, here are 10 tips to enjoy freelance translation in Japan.
Translation can be lonely. You spend hours of hours at home starring at your screen and working on your project. If you enjoy talking to your coworkers, here are 10 tips to enjoy freelance translation in Japan:
1) Visit coworking spaces
A coworking space is an office, where you can meet other freelancers and work. You have fast internet and sometimes free coffee. Some coworking spaces even organize free events on useful topics. Tokyo Cheapo wrote a great article on where to find coworking spaces in Japan. More information: https://tokyocheapo.com/business/drop-in-coworking-spaces-tokyo/
2) Visit the local library
That's what I did. Japan has great public libraries in almost every city. My local one has a free Wi-Fi and a spaces for computers. Many Japanese go there to study for exams or to read books and newspaper. If you get bored, you can enjoy reading books or the latest fashion magazines. You can find local libraries by researching on Google Maps the Japanese word "図書館" (library) and your location by using GPS.
3) Visit the local Starbucks
Starbucks has a free Wi-Fi for 1 hour. It's a nice living atmosphere there and the coffee is great. The downside is that you cannot use the Wi-Fi for more than 1 hour. However, if you need to concentrate that's a great way to actually get stuff done.
4) Join Translation & Interpretation Networking Events
You find many networking events in Japan. For example, the homepage of Japan Association of Translators (https://jat.org/) or the homepage of Japan Association of Conference Interpreters (http://www.japan-interpreters.org/en/)is a great source. Official organized events are more expensive and then private one. You find cheaper events in translation related Facebook groups. Just search for keywords such as Translation, Interpretation in Japan.
5) Visit Exhibitions
There are many interesting Exhibitions at the Tokyo Big Sight (http://www.bigsight.jp/english/) or the Makuhari Messe in Chiba (https://www.m-messe.co.jp/en/). Many companies look for exhibition interpreters. Just go there and introduce yourself. By giving them your translation business card, you can find new direct clients and further learn more about the new trends in that industry.
6) Meet other Translators for Lunch
LinkedIn is a great network for finding other freelance interpreter and translators. It takes a lot of courage at first, but you can find new friends in the industry by asking them for lunch. Even after living in Japan for a years, I still don't understand why Japanese eat alone. They are so many great people to eat lunch with.
7) Visit Translation Companies
By visiting the translation agencies, you can increase the quality of work you get. It's important to know the people, you work with in person. Keep in mind that email communication is very efficient, but not everything.
8) Attend Seminars
As freelance translator you need to know more about business. Why don't you take the time and attend an seminar on marketing or sales? Seminars on translation can help you to learn more about different fields such as skills of literature translation, patent translation or medical translation.
9) Live in a Share-House
Living alone and working alone is sometime snot the best option. You can save rent by living in a share-house. It's so interesting, you can find share-houses especially designed for freelancers with a working space. Some of them even offer free cleaning service or events. Regard more here: https://www.social-apartment.com/
10) Job-Search for In-House Positions
Working as freelancer is not for everyone. You can always apply for In-house positions. You can find recruiter on LinkedIn or apply direct to translation companies.
I hope you enjoyed reading. Please let me know your strategies as well. What do you do to avoid social isolation?
Why Medical Interpretation matters in Japan
Living in a different country is a big challenge for many foreigners. Especially, for people coming from western countries, the Japanese language and cultural barrier is difficult. Japan is a wonderful country to work, study, and to find many great friends. Nevertheless, learning the language and the culture is a time-consuming process. That process can be fun and exciting, but sometimes even the most motivated language learning faces numerous issues.
Today I want to talk about the importance of medical interpretation in Japan. Let's use the example of having a cold in Japan. Many people don't like to visit a doctor. When you have a cold, all you want to do is sleep and take light medicine, rest and recover. In a foreign country that means you either: a) contact a Japanese friend to help you or b) just do it by yourself. Without speaking Japanese, doing such chores presents a huge challenge. The ability to speak a foreign language depends on your mental and physical ability as well. That means if you sick the last thing you want to do is try to use your broken Japanese. Let's be honest: You just want to sleep and recover.
There is not only plan A or plan B. Why don't you consider contacting an Interpreter to help? You can find great interpreters online or by contacting an interpretation agency.
In most cases, you find an interpreter fast by telling them the hospital you want to visit (Location), a brief overview of your situation (Content) and what time you want to visit the hospital (Time). You will be surprised how fast you can find somebody, who will help you to get you the right medicine and help you talk to the doctor in Japanese. In my experience, many doctors in Japan are highly skilled, so if you just get rid of the language barrier you will feel great in no time.
Do you feel nervous when visiting a doctor in Japan? Tell me your story!
What is the difference between Interpretation and Translation?
I'm surprised to hear that many people don't know the difference between Translation and Interpretation. Most of the mails I get by clients ask me if I can translate for them. In most cases, they want me to work as Interpreter. Not many people know the difference between Interpretation and Translation.
I'm surprised to hear that many people don't know the difference between Translation and Interpretation. Most of the mails I get by clients ask me if I can translate for them. In most cases, they want me to work as Interpreter. Not many people know the difference between Interpretation and Translation.
In simple words, Interpretation is the translation of spoken words. It is a job where you need great communication skills, speed and like to meet people in person. A Translator can spend weeks without actually meeting clients in person. It's a great job if you like to work from home. As a professional translator you try to find the best possible translation for a written text. Therefore, a translator needs great research and writing skills in the first place. Both professions are similar in a way that you need language skills. Therefore, some translators sometimes work as Interpreter as well. A client who knows your language abilities will ask you not only for interpretation, but also for the translation of documents. For me that is the best way to find translation work, because a direct client will pay better rates than someone you just meet online. Here people look for the fastest and cheapest translator to get the job done.