Kanji, Hiragana, Katakana

Did you know that there are 3, that's right I said 3 Japanese alphabets??? Kanji the most difficult are the Chinese characters in the Japanese language. This must date back to some historical thing when the two were one. I am certain my ignorance is showing here because maybe I should know this but I do know more than a friend that asked if I would take a taxi to China during my stay. But the Japanese generally speaking are not fond of the Chinese. This is a broad steryotype that I have actually experienced. Maybe that is why Kanji is so darn hard to comprehend, understand or master.
Hiragana and Katakana are a bit easier. I can recognize some of these characters and it comes in handy on the train. Thank God they have English and lots of pictures as well though. Hiragana symbols represents a sound in Japanese. In Japanese foreign names are generally written using the phonetic Katakana alphabet. So like, when I was in the hospital last month My IV did not have my English name by phonetically it was my name. The nurse would come in to verify the new bag of antibiotics and say, "Matt-a-ryn Rudchita?" I would respond, "Hai"

It also helps when taking the bus to COSTCO. Yes there is one here and I love it. It brings me great joy to get a real hot dog and slice of pizza from as it is pronounced "Costa-co"