Thursday, April 15, 2010

Look See! Anyone Do Read This and It Will Make You Laughable

I got this in the mail and thought I would record it on my blog.

From the Wall Street Journal...

Brussels-Sometimes it does get all lost in the translation.
"Please leave your valuables at the front desk, " says the sign at a Paris hotel. At a Japanese hotel, "Your are invited to take advantage of the chambermaid." A Zurich hotel advises: "Because of the impropriety of entertaining guests of the opposite sex in the bedroom, it is suggest that the lobby be used for this purpose."

Such tortured English-language signs were featured in Brussels, Belgium in an exhibit organized by the European Community's translation service.

Hungry? From a Polish menu, select "roasted duck let loose" or perhaps "beef rashers beaten up in the country people's fashion." A Swiss eatery proudly warns, "Our wines leave you nothing to hope for." By any and all means avoid the Acapulco hotel that gives new meaning to quality control: "The manager has personally passed all the water served here."

Excellent child-care benefits in Norway don't extend to a cocktail lounge where "Ladies are requested not to have children at the bar."

From Moscow: "You are invited to visit the cemetery," reads a sign in the hotel across the street, "where famous Russian and Soviet composers, artists and writers are buried daily except Thursday." Bucharest bluntness: "The lift is being fixed for the next day. During that time we regret that you will be unbearable."

A Budapest zoo puts people first: "Please do not feed the animals. If you have any suitable food, give it to the guard on duty." At a Hong Kong dentist, "teeth are extracted by the latest Methodists." And a refreshingly honest airline office in Copenhagen "will take your bags and send them in all directions."

Clothing signs can also be unfitting. A Swedish furrier: "Fur coats made for the ladies from their own skin." A Paris shop advertises "dresses for street walking." A Tokyo shop's nylon stockings are costly but "best in the long run." And a Rhodes tailor want early orders for summer suits, "because in a big rush we will execute customers in a strict rotation."

But who needs clothing? "Drop your trousers here for best results," suggest a Bangkok dry cleaner, while a laundry in Rome says: "Ladies, leave your clothes here and spend the afternoon having a good time." Nearby is a Roman doctor with manifold talents: "Specialist in women and other diseases."

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