Signese

Any view on this sign?

Available for purchase in one of our hotels during our recent trip. I think there's some useful vocabulary here

This is the first hotel I've stayed in for a long time that includes condoms for purchase -- and it wasn't a particularly cheap hotel! I assume it's not part of an anti-AIDS campaign or something like that?

I also appreciate the price being labeled in four languages.

Easy question: if they had one of these in your hometown when you were growing up, how often would you have been there?

Hard question: since I'm sure you read and remember every one of my posts so you know where I went, and using your google / Chinese reading skills, in which city is this currently located? [Actually this might not be so hard, as the first google hit for 醒酒桩 currently gives the answer....]

I just want to show the photos about Roosevelt the metro station and the sign about Zhou close to Place d'Italie.

As to Lafayette (edit - the department store, not the general), please find out how the Traditional Chinese version of its store guide is different from the other versions.

Yet Another Chinese Toilet Sign.

Easy question:

1) What is the Chinese name for the invention that would eliminate the need for this sign?

I took this photo in Lyon a couple of days ago. If you are interested, you can try to find out the following -

1. What is written on the big character? How are the small characters arranged?

2. What characters (traditional / simplified) are used on the poster?

Side story about a scam - outside the Cathedral Notre Dame in Lyon, different young people asked me to sign on a form with a big UNICEF heading. They did not speak to me, but just held up that signature form to my face. It appeared that they were asking for support for the cause of UNICEF. But then I noticed that their fingers covered the last column of the form, which was for the signers to write down the amount of money they would give. If that was legitimate they would not need to play such a trick. I had been fooled by this trick once many years ago in Paris.

I am not going to attach a picture to this post. The main reason is that I don't have one. But please keep reading.

This all happened in Hong Kong. Yesterday a friend wrote to me, telling me that he had seen a rubbish bin labelled 垃圾暨廢物回收箱. He then asked me jokingly what the difference between 垃圾 and 廢物 was.

Now don't use google / baidu yet. Try to (1) think of a difference between 垃圾 and 廢物, however unreasonable.

I managed to first come up with an imagined difference (it was racist so I am not going to repeat it here), and then find the real one.

Now you may use google and / or baidu and (2) find out what the real difference is.

Then another friend joined the discussion and she tried to find a better name for the rubbish bin. Why don't you also (3) suggest a better name for this poor laughing-stock-rubbish-bin?

When you explore this issue, you will come across an article titled "垃圾暨廢物" written by famous lyricist 林夕. Do take a look. It is quite funny. And then consider how you would handle the word "暨" (suggest you take care of this under item (3)).

By now you should have found a picture of this rubbish bin. If you have not, use the link below. Have fun.

I took this picture today. It was the back of the seat in front of mine in a van. If you like, you could try to figure out -

A. Who the writer was unhappy about, and

B. Who in particular, and

C. Why.

I took these pictures yesterday. The first one is of the door of the metro I took to get to Kanyon Mall at Levant, Istanbul. I took it because I thought a Chinese character was used in the design. However, having stared at the pattern long enough I found that it was not. You can try to identify the differences (from the Chinese character I had thought it was).

The second one is a sign at a Chinese/Japanese restaurant near the cinema of the mall. I found it strikingly ugly.

Ingredients of a Korean aloe vera drink I just had. No question, just for fun.

I took these pictures on Friday morning (local time) at the site where the Chinese Embassy, bombed by the US / NATO, used to be.

If you like you can try to (1) identify the characters on the plaque with missing strokes; and / or (2) read the words on the pink ribbons of the wreath.

Everyone's favourite Sound of Music song Edelweis has come across these signs in a library. Maybe in Paris, I can't remember. But that's not the point.

1) Can you translate the two signs?

2) Does the grammar seem ok to you?

3) And more difficultly - what's that scrawled note say?

4) And getting silly now - what is the significance of the number 19.25?

Quicky for you from the streets of Beidaihe, sent to us by some bloke called Imron.

1) This message has been posted by who, and criticizes what?

2) The bottom line is a bit difficult to read - can you make it out?

3) That last four letter phrase looks like it's either a variant or a mistake - what's the more common version?

4) Will all your answers result in us getting banned?

and they are in Cantonese.

The one with the apple is actually part of the poster of the movie "Bad Teacher". The other one was taken amongst the wine racks of a Hong Kong supermarket.

Enjoy.

I took this picture at the cashier of a small restaurant tonight.

If you like, you can -

i) explain what it is;

ii) consider why the shop does this;

iii) comment on the quality of the picture.

Here‘s a fun old one from 2005, which I was about to say I took on Xinjiekou, although closer inspection shows that it was actually passed on to me by good old Brendan. I'm sure he won't mind me recycling it. I think this was from a batch taken in Chengdu, but I'm less sure about that.

1) What is the boss called, and what state of mind is he in?

2) What is the store's haggling policy?

3) What emotions are being aroused among staff by the prices offered?

4) Why might the store need to shift stock quickly?

I'm not actually in China at the moment, so Signese resources have been somewhat scarce on the ground lately. However, I've been shamed into action by the prolific postings by the folk at 中文挑战 - and one quick raid of the archives over at Signese.com, here we go:

1)This photo was taken outside a __________ on a _____________.

2) Operation of this facility requires __________ to be moved by ___________.

3) Said facility was funded by ________________.

4) Your ___________ and _____________ are hoped for. Although it is not made explicit, this probably means asking you to _________.

And a hint for anyone trying to figure out what 水所工运 means:

Extra credit for anyone who types up the sign so others can look up the words easier. I'll come back and check your answers later.

... and I was really happy. I took this in a big G.O.D. (Goods Of Desire; 住好啲) shop in Causeway Bay. I am kind of a fan of this brand, and I think the designer Douglas Young is quite talented.

Now just figure out what it is about. It is in Cantonese (some well-learned members might say it is not. But to me, a lesser Chinese who lives in Hong Kong, this is Cantonese enough). Thank you for reading this post.

PS - and I think that this item is for display only.

Well, it is a clearance.

Since we haven't had a (proper *cough* *cough*) posing in a while, I think I would add this one from a while back.

Just one question: does one still see such signs?

This was taken on a footbridge close to the place where you apply for a Chinese Visa in Wanchai, Hong Kong.

There is another one saying the same thing on the same footbridge. And they have been there for a while. It seems that, unlike some of the graffiti saying "Who's afraid of XXX", these graffiti have attracted no attention at all (except mine). ;)

1) What does the text on the side of this coach say?

Bonus question:

2) Who was paid to do the stenciling?

This is rare, in this age of telecommunications where people receive news on their cell phones, computers or on TV/radio almost instantly. I got this at about 4PM today whereas the announcement was made at 11AM (Beijing time). So it had taken about five hours for this news to reach me. Not too bad for paper medium.

The last time I saw such a thing I was in Tokyo. That day a man stabbed many people dead in Akihabara, thus the paper.

So what is this piece of paper called?

In it there is a term which is seldom used nowadays - 伏法. What does it mean?

I used an envelope to cover a gruesome picture.

What can you buy for 188 yuan?

Most of the questions I've asked about pictures here have been rather easy. Here's a more difficult one...

Where was this picture taken?