Bad translations

houstongal says on Aug 11, 2008, 20:58:

bump!

"It is now official: there's no place on earth where you will not find a Peruvian band." David Sedaris

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goin_south says on Aug 11, 2008, 23:56:

China ... bad? Hey, is this another slammm on Beijing???
If Peter would reinstate the 'time/date' of said post, then I wouldn't have to wonder how long this has been sitting here, ... waiting for action.

And, ... not to Semi-Hi-Jack the thread but....(since the Colombians are not goin_to win too many medals in Beijing, I wanna give 'em a GOLD MEDAL for this GOOD TRANSLATION, and I found this on my door in the Hotel in Bogota one morning (yeah! Believe! those rollas know their shtufffff!) jjejjee........

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travelingirl says on Aug 12, 2008, 01:31:

I'm pretty sure Houston isn't "slamming on Beijing". Looks like she was just pointing out some funny translations.

Sorry, Houston, but I don't have any good ones of my own to post. All of yours are funny, especially that last one. hehe

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JGD says on Aug 12, 2008, 04:10:

HG,
One of my favorite sites is:
http://engrish.com/
You can submit your own

Panties not best thing on earth, but next to best thing on earth.

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houstongal says on Aug 12, 2008, 06:40:

GS - It definitely wasn't a slam on Beijing. They're just examples of some really bad translations that make no sense. Thank goodness the text is accompanied by a picture.

"It is now official: there's no place on earth where you will not find a Peruvian band." David Sedaris

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webmanco says on Aug 12, 2008, 09:07:

No hay extremo cierto o verdadero, porque los extremos opacan, enruedan, (lavan cerebros) verdades. Yotas

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Monpirri says on Aug 12, 2008, 12:34:

Houstongal, this is a very interesting topic for those who love travel.
On my way back from New Jersey I picked up the New York Times newspaper at La Guardia Airport and I saved it. (June 25, 2008)
There was an article "China Orders Up Menus for Tourists" that will complement your post. Basically the article says that the Chinese government was putting out a guide of English translations for some Chinese dishes due to the fact the cultural factor played a major role in contributing to a bit of confusion for the tourists who were visiting China during the Olympic games.

Here are a couple of dish examples; "Husband-and wife slung slices" is now described more precisely, but no more invitingly, as "pork lungs in chili sauce." (Husband-and-wife" is a common description for pairings.)"

"The “red-roasted lion’s head’ – braised pork served with a mane of bok choy leaves"

There is a problem or an eminent misunderstanding when the Chinese translate word by word a menu or a narrative.

Here’s the whole story, http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/25/dining/25chinese.html?_r=1&partner=M...

"Anyone who still thinks that Colombia is not a gastronomical paradise needs to have their head examined." Darloup

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houstongal says on Aug 12, 2008, 19:40:

I remember reading that when the article came out Monpirri! I guess that's why the Chinese word for "cell phone" is "hatchet man machine"!

"It is now official: there's no place on earth where you will not find a Peruvian band." David Sedaris

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goin_south says on Aug 12, 2008, 22:59:

The Thread is Obviously funny, and interesting,... by Houstongal. KUDOS!
But, I see alot on the media, that the american reporters say in very suttle tones, they are in fact slamming China, and well... to my knowledge, there was never any love lost between Japan & China ;-) (thought maybe in your own suttle way, you had joined the fray... maybe you did and aren't admitting it/tellling us :-))

Now, let's have come contributions; I made mine :-)

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Monpirri says on Aug 14, 2008, 10:25:

HG, that's funny, "hatche man machine" about the dish "Ants on the tree"? from the same article. lol funny stuff indead!

"Anyone who still thinks that Colombia is not a gastronomical paradise needs to have their head examined." Darloup

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