The Sunday travel section of the local paper focused on Japan, and rightly so. I thoroughly enjoyed my time there. It was beautiful, clean, and hospitable. I'm not looking for a reason to complain, and I've said earlier that it's hard to find a bad translation of Japanese to English on the web, but at the local level they are still prevalent and amusing. I did some deep poking around today and found this little collection of gems. They're from the wesbite of the Ikenotaira Hotel in Nagano, and more particularly from the page about their thermal baths:
- To use hotel hot spring before check-in, please do the check-in procedure at front desk.
- Swimsuit or trunk worn is needed in the mixed bathing areas. (Rental swimsuit: 300 yen)
- Hotel resident is free of charge to use hotel hot spring.
More disconcerting is the way the Japanese have gone overboard in their embrace of American culture. One article from the Sunday paper shows a Japanese boy wearing a a t-shirt that imitates the typical American phys-ed standard issue workout shirt, but his says "Luck Central" and "Posh Pail Div." That's no translation; that's stringing catch-words together in a freakish and failed attempt to sound American. I have seen Japanese shirts that said (in English) "Yachting Beach Champion" and "Master Competition Surf". It's spam--fashion spam--that's what it is.
Ever checked out the stationery at a Korean supermarket (in the States)? I don't recall of they're "Made in Korea", but they've got these Sanrio-esque items that say the silliest phrases in English. Wish I could give an example, but I don't have my stationery in front of me.
Author's Follow-up: I'll keep that in mind when I want a good laugh. Thanks for the tip.
Posted by: Sheena | February 11, 2006 2:05 AM | Permalink to Comment