Hello :) The purpose of this group is to provide both: 1) a 24/7 online hangout on Facebook and,  2) weekly NYC, in-person Events where people can actually use their Japanese! Practice makes perfect and this group provides lots of practice. ALL LEVELS ARE WELCOME, as long as you do not use English and are determined to improve your reading/writing/spoken Japanese language ability. There is NO elitism or judgment here, so feel confident to bust out your Japanese! Meetup.com cannot actually display Japanese characters anywhere on its website. To get around this, we have our Facebook page that is used as the online portion of our language immersion.

As for our live Events, they are where we can break bread and watch Japanese drama/sitcoms/anime and speak with each other in Japanese. We have also added a weekly Japanese exercise class that takes place in Manhattan and you can really work up a sweat while swearing in Japanese slang ;)

The Facebook Wall is quite active and is used as our own private Japanese-language sandbox. You can post and discuss whatever you like, provided that it is in kana/kanji/romaji and links may only be from native Japanese-language sites.

** IMPORTANT ** Our group is primarily for people who want to use and improve their Japanese through daily exposure to the language. If you would not be interested in posting either on a daily basis or just a few times a week (even if it is only one word), then this is not the group for you. The Facebook page is actually addictive and you will spend more and more time there, becoming a Japanese-language warrior!

New members will be sent a link to the Facebook page and are granted posting privileges immediately, along with a chance to RSVP for our NYC Events. Arigatou gozaimashita! 

-Louis

P.S.  Please keep in mind that while cancellations are okay, being a no-show at an Event will get you immediately removed from this group. Also, being an inactive member (not making any Facebook posts AND not attending any events for 30 days straight) will auto-remove you from this group as well. This policy is strict but it ensures that the people who remain in the group are the ones that are genuinely interested.

P.P.S.  I am the boss  :)  If you have problems or criticisms about this group or like to troll...please don't join. This group is run like a private school, rather than a public school. The delinquent kids get expelled! 

P.P.P.S.  YOU MUST BE 21 OR OLDER TO JOIN THIS GROUP.

So if you are STILL interested (even after all of my nonsense), we welcome you with open arms!