Our mission statement: We are a social organization dedicated to sharing Japanese and American culture plus the spoken and written study of the Japanese and English languages while maintaining fellowship with native speakers of each language.

Our meetup is located in the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area.  We host events in MD, DC, and Northern VA.  Study Japanese and/or English with a community that shares the same language exchange interests as you.  People who want to speak (or hear) Japanese or English can join. It is open to all ages 18 and over and all levels of skill.

Unlike a classroom setting, we meet in a casual environment such as a restaurant, a coffee house, or even online using Skype. People then simply form natural conversations, practice groups, and/or friends. And if you are looking for a conversation partner, you are likely to find one through this meetup.

We currently have events on Thursday nights, Friday nights, Saturdays, and sometimes on Sundays.  Some of these events occur monthly while others recur weekly.

We also feature a Conversation Partner Program in the club that our organizers regularly manage.  The concept of a conversation partner is that two members (or perhaps a small group of members) meet at least once a week to practice language exchange through regular conversation.  Those two members (or group) decide the best day and time to meet on a regular basis and stick to it to keep practicing the target language.

There is absolutely no cost to join us. If we meet at a restaurant, people pay individually at the end. Some venues, such as a karaoke club, would have an equally shared cost.  Otherwise, we are never going to ask you for money (however, we will accept any voluntary donations.  Please contact an organizer to learn how to donate to the meetup).

Before joining us, please visit http://www.meetup.com/mj-elc/about. ; This page outlines the basics and the rules of our meetup which we expect all members to carry out.