tcreath--Ohayo gozaimasu!

Exactly 2 months until we fly out of IAD to Tokyo! Yesssss. It will be cherry blossum time (barring unusual weather) so it's been an adventure getting the type of accomodations we want in the locations we prefer.

We're giving the Japanese language CDs quite a workout--"Iie, wakarimasen" will be quite useful.

RufusT: Japanese is quite easy to speak, it's completely phonetic. It's the writing that mystifies people. Learning a few key phrases to be polite and nice to people shouldn't be a problem. Also check out a few important signs like Entrance/Exit, Men/Women's loos, left/right.
Gambatte kudasai!

Still learning English, as are many others here in Australia. Lack of opportunities for immersion is our excuse for having even less success with other languages. Tell someone here you're bilingual and you're liable to get a dirty look; tell 'em you're multilingual and they'll want to join in.