English notebook. 3rd note. Hello everyone. I don't think it is correct to say "I know English perfectly"; since I started learning this language back when I was a kid, I often stumbled upon native Spanish speakers who thought their English skills were perfect. When someone says that, I try to talk to him/her in English to see his/her proficiency. I've found that most of the Spanish speakers I know who claim to speak a perfect English, don't do so. I think my language skills are constantly perfectible rather than perfect. As I wrote in my italki bio, I would like to earn a schollarship to study in Japan. Kyushu University requires foreign students to score 92 or higher in the TOEFL in order to apply to any of its graduate programs. A 92+ TOEFL score is a C2 level in the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages, C2!!! C2 level is defined as "language mastery". I'm wondering, if native English speakers took the TOEFL, would they get C2 scores? I say this because I'm a native Spanish speaker, and I don't think I'm a "master" in Spanish, you know what I mean? It scares me to think about not getting a C2 TOEFL score. Would you think that's a very tough deed? Or maybe I'm just overreacting? It would be great if you let me know your opinions and your advices. Thanks for reading this.

日本語のノート。第２回。 こんにちは！ 今コロンビアで午後１時です。今朝私が初めてSKYPEで日本人と話しました。ビデオチャットは１時間半ごろ続いた。あの人は女の人です、Italki.comで彼女に会った。いろいろなものについて話しました。私はここでしか土曜日に日本人に話すことができます。だから、今朝、彼女と話をし良かったですね。じゃ、これは短いノートです。私は日本語を改善するために、よりひんぱんに日本人とチャットすることができると思います。 Everyone's invited. :-) ありがとうございました！

English notebook. First English notebook entry. First of all, I would like to apologize about what I'll write. Don't get me wrong, hahaha. I apologize because I'm writing this note as naturally as I can without using translators or any other kind of help. I don't want it to feel "scripted", you know... Well, let's do it. I wanna write you guys about how I learned English. I was 12 years old when my school English teacher told me he was going to open an English institute in my hometown. I have to admit I wasn't really into English in that moment, so the "reason" I started studying English at my teacher's institute was parental authority - yes, my parents decided it. That institute's name was "The English Academy". Pretty convenient, huh? Some old teenage acquaintances of that time (including some relatives) enroled with me, but I was the only one from that group to fullfill all the levels (from "begginers" to "conversational"). Now that I realize, I wasn't very disciplined - and I'm not proud of it - but in exchange, I learned quickly. The whole course was supposed to last two years, but it took me almost three years and a half to finish because I wasn't very constant. In the end, I graduated with other people I did not know when I started. I was still a teenager while most of them were already adults (25 years old upwards). I can't complain though. The last classes were just us meeting with our teacher to speak only in English and do lots or varied stuff, going from wall painting to barbecues and field trips. I was 15 when I graduated from my English course and was still a high-school student. Nevertheless, my English formation didn't stop there. I've put all of my efforts to understand English speakers and to think like they do sometimes, and I must say I'm amazed! Now most of my readings, movies, writings and all sorts of communications are done in English. I know my English is far from perfect, but I like to use it and improve it. I'm even working on our graduate law school thesis with a friend and it's about animal rights. Most of the texts we read - I would say about 70% - are written in English. I hope I can keep on learning this and many other languages. Thanks for reading this.

最初のノート。 日本語で最初のノート。 今午前１時３６分。これはノートの初めに。私はロースクールの大学生です。来年日本へ卒業勉強しに行きたいから、毎日英語と日本語を勉強します。趣味は本を読むこと、音楽を聞くこと、外国語を勉強することです。ひらがなとカタカナが上手分かりますが、漢字は少し分かります。６５の漢字が分かります、難しいですから。日本文化と日本料理がとても好きです。。。日本へ行くことは私の夢です。じゃ、終わったね。。。 みなさん、ありがとうございました！