Makoto Ishida, a Japanese student studying at the Institute for International Education, won the 2016 Confucius Institute National Scholarship of Sapporo University. He has learned Chinese for just two and a half years, but he could already speak Chinese fluently like a native speaker, with a typical Beijing accent. During the interview, he had told us several times that he felt “I am more like a Chinese than a Japanese”.

Makoto Ishida in the Interview

Ishida first learned Chinese at senior high school. At his high school, Chinese lessons were given as required courses. Ishida acquired some basic knowledge of Chinese and began to gain an interest in Chinese at that time. So he chose Chinese as his major as he entered the Confucius Institute of Sapporo University. Ishida met a Chinese teacher from Shenyang City at the institute, who had a significant influence on him. “I learned Chinese from her and I even acquired her accent.” Ishida said. As his Chinese teacher was from northern China, she was frank and warm-hearted. “I was impressed by her personality and I also became a frank person.”

Ishida in the Contest

Ishida was a diligent student. He spent a lot of time learning Chinese and seized any opportunity to talk with Chinese students so as to practice his Chinese. He proudly showed us his WeChat contacts, and had more than 200 friends. He has won several scholarships and joined in some activities related to Chinese. Ishida took part in the contest of a famous Chinese program called Chinese Bridge and was selected as the champion of the Sapporo area. He came to Hunan Province to take part in the final and got an excellent prize. He has also taken the HSK tests and is now a HSK6 learner. He now studies in a high-level class at GDUFS.

Ishida's Chinese Speech Draft

When Ishida talked about his hobbies, his eyes kindled with excitement. “I am a super fan of Fei Yu-Qing and Deng Li-jun, and I have been learning to sing their songs for a long time.” He even listed some classic Chinese songs that were popular in the 1960s, which were his favorite. To our surprise, he has already recorded his own vocals to some classic Chinese songs with a Karaoke app, and has shared them on his WeChat Moments. “It’s difficult to sing Fei’s songs, for he has a high-pitched voice. But I’m still trying to imitate him.” He added that he sometimes went to karaoke and practiced singing Chinese songs in his leisure time.

With just two months until he goes back to Japan, Ishida said he was not willing to leave. “I don’t want to leave China, and I will absolutely come back and settle in China.” It seemed that Ishida had a special bond with China: no wonder he kept on saying “I am more like a Chinese”.

The Scene of the Interview