Lost in translation (in English)

All the pictures are commented in English because they were written English (and also because some readers speak English). That is.

This is your menu.
The waiter (who is luckily not a Parisian one) is waiting for your order.
Could you please proceed (as much as you can).

What's just bellow, in French, just tries to explain how translating from Chinese IS actually complex... Please don't misread me : this is just for fun. Enjoy !
An article on this issue can be found here.

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Les commentaires sont en anglais puisque les textes commentés le sont et que certains de mes "lecteurs" ne parlent qu'anglais !

Loin de moi l'idée d'entrer dans des considérations philosophiques sur les langues et les différentes et riches représentations du monde qu'elles véhiculent. Il n'empêche... Si penser en anglais ne recouvre pas exactement la même chose que penser en français, il est possible d'appréhender ces différences. Le mot "liberté" renvoie peu ou prou au même concept que "liberty" en anglais ou "freiheit" en allemand. En Chinois, le mot est formé de deux idéogrammes. Le premier veut dire "soi même" et le second "origine". La liberté est donc en chinois ce qui n'est défini que par soi même. (cette exemple est tiré de l'excellent bouquin de C Javary, 100 mots pour comprendre les chinois).

Sous cette angle, tout travail de traduction ressemble a une gageure...

Aussi n'est il pas étonnant de trouver des traductions chinois vers l'anglais qui laissent le touriste rêveur, voir moqueur... Mon propos n'est pas ici de railler ces traductions fort amusantes pour qui sait en saisir la substantifique moëlle, mais il aurait été dommage de laisser inconnu tous ces chefs d'œuvre de contre sens.

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To start with this collection of pictures you are advised to read carrefully this interesting notice :


I was quite surprised to discover such a notice. To be honest I wouldn't have been surprised to discover its equivalent in France where the author, in love with his mother tongue, couldn't do less than advise English speaking readers in French.

This one is more straight forward (and perfectly understandable) :


Whereas those two give a sharp sight of local warning signs:


As advice goes, this one doesn't leave you much choice : when you slip please be kind enough to do it gently (and feel free to break up your face).


But here come the tasty ones. Look at this menu first. Wanna go for something really off the tracks ? pick up the item in the at second line !!

The crispy colorectal : ass good ass you can expect !

Here is a hot one (after you've been aroused by the previous one) : The big skirt burning lava !!


And finally, last but not least, are those juicy ones :


Don't ask me about the "lettuce that", I only know about "analyze that":


Analyzing might be a little more difficult to sort out the sucking chain initiated by Seto (?) :


And I woud be curious to know more about the actual content of Alexa's ball :


Alexa who might be a cook goddess prefers to stay out of all that mess :


All in all it's fair : if Alexa goes to the United States she will have to cope with strange meals :


Actually for this one, and unfortunatly only this one, I have an explanation (thanks to Ida). The pronounciation of the word for "United state" is very close in Chinese from the one of the word for "Maggy sauce". This just means that someting (the "Du de") is prepared with Maggy sauce.

A misinterpretation that the author of this display didn't have at all in expressing very clearly his feelings :