Tuesday, June 12, 2007

Lost in translation

Here in Peru, Engrish is not quite as prevalent as it seems to be in Asia, but I have spotted some laughable translations and typos recently:

Across the plaza from my school, hairstylists work at the unisex saloon.

In the foothills just north of the city is located the "Centro de camélidos sudamericanos", or for you English-speakers, the "Sudamerican camels center". I'm not quite sure what Sudamerica is, it sort of sounds like a laundry detergent, but if it is a real place I wouldn't take my camels there if I were you. (Camélido, by the way, refers to the family of animals comprising llamas, alpacas, guanacos and vicuñas.)

Walking along Tullumayu (Quechua for "narrow river") street, I saw a: "Restaurat típico". It's no secret that guinea pig is considered a delicacy around here, but I really think that rats have no place in eating establishments.

1 comment:

Vanessa Swenson said...

Ahhh, rats, tasty. Maybe the Asian Engrish is affecting Perú more than you think. Rats are a delicacy in China. In fact, you get to pick your rat from a cage out front before you get to eat it in some restaurants. No that's high brow, eh?
And the only suds that I would buy would be the American ones, dangit!