Mukashi-wa baiku-ni notte yoru-no haiuē-o tsuppashitte-ita-n-da. (Back in the old days I used to ride my motorbike down the highway at night.)

Situation 1: Mr. Sere and his senior colleague Mr. Ueno are chatting about a motorbike during their break.

上野： 昔はバイクに乗って夜のハイウェーを突っ走って いたんだ。

セレ： ええっ、ほんとですか。今の上野さんからは想像できない...。

Ueno: Mukashi-wa baiku-ni notte yoru-no haiuē-o tsuppashitte-ita-n-da.

Sere: Ee, honto-desu-ka. Ima-no Ueno-san-kara-wa sōzō-dekinai ...

Ueno: Back in the old days I used to ride my motorbike down the highway at night.

Sere: Huh, is that true? Hard to imagine you doing that nowadays ...

Today we'll introduce the noun 昔(むかし), which has a wide range of meanings. It is the opposite of 今(いま, now) and means "the old days, the past, ancient times." 昔 indicates a certain period in the past that the speaker experienced or a far-away past. Example: 昔はこの駅(えき)のそばは原(はら)っぱが広(ひろ)がっていたという (It's said that the area near this station used to be all fields). 昔 can come before a noun in the pattern 昔のX(=noun). Examples: きのう、お父(とう)さんの昔の友(とも)だちが訪(たず)ねてきた (Yesterday an old friend of my father's called on him at our house); この町(まち)は昔のままで、全然 (ぜんぜん)変(か)わっていない (This town is as it was and hasn't changed at all). 昔 also indicates the specific time preceding a certain time, as in 100年(ひゃくねん)以上(いじょう)も昔、ここには大(おお)きなお城(しろ)があった (There was a big castle here more than 100 years ago). 昔のX(=person's name)ではない is an idiom that shows someone's character or thought has changed greatly, as in 彼(かれ)は昔の彼じゃない (He is not who he used to be). 昔 can be used as an adverb, as in この曲(きょく)は昔流行(りゅうこう)した音楽(おんがく)だ (This tune is the kind of music that used to be popular long ago).

Situation 2: Mr. Okubo and her junior high school student daughter, Takako, are walking in a field in their neighborhood.

父： この辺は大昔、海だったんだよ。

たか子： ああ、そうだったの。だから、貝の化石が出てくるんだね。

Chichi: Kono hen-wa ōmukashi, umi-datta-n-da-yo.

Takako: Aa, sō-datta-no. Dakara, kai-no kaseki-ga dete-kuru-n-da-ne.

Father: This area used to be an ocean long, long ago.

Takako: Oh, I see. That's why we can find fossils of shells.

大昔(おおむかし), the emphasized form of 昔, means "antiquity, ancient times" and refers to a very long time ago, isolated from the present. Example: 大昔の人(ひと)はどうやってピラミッドを作(つ く)ったのだろうか (How did the ancient people built pyramids?).

Bonus Dialogue: Mr. Mita and his alumni, Mr. Sere, are talking after their first visit to their university since graduation.

三田： 駅(えき)は変(か)わってしまったけど、大学(だいがく)は昔(むかし)のままだったね。

セレ： うん、昔(むかし)はよかったなあ。

三田： そういっても、卒業(そつぎょう)して10年(じゅう ねん)ぐらいだから、そんなに昔じゃないけど。あれ、なんで笑(わら)っているんだ？

セレ： 三田くんが、昔からしょっちゅうだれかを好(す)きになっては、ふられて落(お)ちこんでいたことを思(おも)い出(だ)したんだ。

三田： そうだったな。でも、ぼくはもう昔のぼくじゃないよ。もう少(すこ)し慎重(しんちょう)に恋愛(れんあい)することにする。

セレ： いや、無理(むり)しなくていいよ。失敗(しっぱい)は成功(せいこう)の母(はは)って言(い)うだろう？

三田： うん。昔の人はうまいことを言ったなあ。よし、 またがんばろう。

Mita: The station has changed, but our university is still the same as back then.

Sere: Yeah, I miss the good old days!

Mita: That said, it has only been about 10 years since we graduated. Hey, why are you smiling?

Sere: I was just remembering how you'd frequently fall in love with a girl and be rejected.

Mita: Yeah, that used to be the case. But I'm not the man I used to be. I've decided to be more cautious when I get involved in a relationship.

Sere: No, you don't have to try so hard. They say failure is a source of success, right?

Mita: Yeah. People in the old days knew what they were talking about. OK, I'll keep trying my best.