Hello Netherlands!

11 2月 2026 12 2月 2026

Ms. Hajime

Hi, I’m Hajime. This is my study notebook for learning Dutch through "JAPAN in HONDRED Kleine STUKJES," a book that rediscovers Japan. I’m studying Dutch while gaining a fresh perspective on my own country.

Episode 1 is "Hajime (begining/starting)." It’s a episode about Judo.

Due to copyright reasons, I cannot post the full text here, so please look for the book at your local library or bookstore!

The Book

外部リンク JAPAN in HONDRED Kleine STUKJES（bol.com）
［概要 / 抜粋文］Auteur:Paulien Cornelisse Taal: NederlandsNederlands

外部リンク pauliencornelisse.nl
［概要 / 抜粋文］The author's official web site

Going ahead with a Regretting Ghost

I am not sure if it is just my personality or a Japanese trait, but I tend to regret a lot of things after making a decision. That said(あ、だけど), I know a British person living in Japan who also regrets his food choice the moment he sees someone else's meal being served. I completely understand how he feels.

My current regret is choosing the book “JAPAN in HONDRED Kleine STUKJES” as the textbook for my self-taught Dutch lessons. When I tried to read the first episode (or STUKJE), I realized it was almost impossible. However, I want to believe that encountering this book was a gift of "Go-en" (a fateful(運命的な) connection). A mother with small children gave it to me when I told her I had started learning Dutch.

It is 2026! AI can help me now! I will just move forward, even with my regular "regretting ghost" by my side.

Of course, this English text also has been polished a lot by AI, even though I originally only asked for a spell check. Well, I needed to keep improving my English anyway😇

I have included Japanese translations for the new words suggested by the AI, for myself😂

Vocabulary

Grammar

基本型: Basic Structure`S + V + R`

Hajime betekent 'beginnen'.

[EN] Hajime means 'to start'.

betekent Verb | 3rd person singular | present tense: to mean (betekenen)

倒置型: Inversion`Time/Place + V + S + R`

Bij judo dacht iedereen dat ik een jongetje was…

[EN] At judo, everyone thought that I was a little boy…

dacht verb | 1st/3rd person singular | past tense : to think (denken)
iedereen Pronoun everyone.

Hajime’s Life in the Netherlands

Hey, I couldn't read this episode at all without the help of AI translation! Because My Dutch level is still at A0 or A1 🍼

The AI suggested that I should at least learn the two sentence structures mentioned above. So, I’m going to try to say something in Dutch using those structures:

Ik ben Hajime.

Correction: Perfect!

Bij a speelgroep dacht een dame dat ik het oma op mijn jongen.

I can see what you are trying to say: "At a playgroup, a lady thought I was the grandma of my boy." (A classic case of mistaken identity, just like the author being mistaken for a boy!)

Correction: "Bij de speelgroep dacht een dame dat ik de oma van mijn zoon was."

Well, at least the AI understood what I wanted to say! I have a two-year-old boy, and I love going to playgroups organized by the local buurtorganisatie.

My son is very energetic. He runs up to his friends to give them a hug, but it looks more like he's attacking them because he always trips them over! Because of this, his teacher suggested a judo class and gave me the location. We went to visit. I was glad that no one was using a table to practice falls like in the book—because that’s not really the Japanese way of doing judo😅 Toddler judo was just so sweet to watch😍