Random

Just a little sprinkle of China fun :)

This is great! You can workout, get your hair done (maybe even your nails) AND eat Chinese food. That's one-stop-shopping, my friend!

Click on the image. Go ahead. Click on it.

It's the Beijing Arts and Crafts MANSION. Take that, Michael's and AC Moore. It's a MANSION.
I didn't go in, but I think I should have!

Signs, Signs, Everywhere a Sign

For the record, I did have to look up the lyrics to make sure I titled this correctly. I'm famous for finding out a decade after the fact that I had my own "Stacy Version" of classic songs. Let's just say I was close this time, but not exact :)

These were the stickers on the steps at the baseball venue. Mind the step. Obey the step.

This is good advice in any language.

My personal favorite. I'm going to contact the company and see if I can get a reproduction to put in our front yard. It's not weeds and dirt, folks, it's "luxuriant grassland" so don't "trample" it!

I'm throwing this one in the mix just to show you how hard it would be to function in a place where EVERYTHING is so different. Sure, they've got some of the places translated, but even the rules of how traffic flows and how exits/on ramps work is so different. It's just amazing.

Hotel Word Play

We quickly realized that the Chinese to English translations were going to be entertaining, so I started snapping pictures from day one. Here are some of our favorites from the hotel:

Do you have any obturated windows in your home?

ob·tu·rat·ed, ob·tu·rat·ing, ob·tu·rates
To close or obstruct.

Not right, not wrong, just different :)

You'll have to click on this one to get the detail. They are excited to offer the "Stoke of Midnight." Is it steak? Is it stoke? I. Don't. Know. But I wondered about it EVERYTIME we got on this elevator.

This one speaks for itself. Only workers can entrance. Please don't entrance here, nonworkers, ok?

This translator was clearly not having a good day. I sincerely don't think they meant any disrespect. I think it's truly a miscommunication, but this is the view I had every morning and evening while I talked to my kids on the lobby phone.