One of our favorite sources of entertainment while out and about in all three of the cities we have been to has been signs everywhere written in Chinglish. Chinglish is a failed Chinese attempt at English. Often, it is the kind of direct translation that comes from an online translator, the kind that makes automatic translations between languages that usually come out woefully incorrect. These kinds of mistakes can be seen on signs everywhere in China, even in culturally diverse areas where better English might be expected. In some situations the mistakes aren’t so bad that the intended meaning of a sign can’t be deciphered, but there have been a few times when we have been left with no idea of what a sign is trying to say. For example, at the gate leading into the parking lot at the section of the Great Wall of China we walked, one sign read “The Tourist Gets Out the Bill Enrollment in Preschool.” I can only assume that the sign probably meant to say something like, “Have Your Ticket Ready Before Entering the Gate,” but who knows. Since getting to Hong Kong, because of the British influence, the English seen and spoken in public has been noticeably better, but not perfect. Being able to better understand different signs has been great, but I do enjoy a good laugh at an incomprehensible attempt at English. Below are a few of the better signs we have seen during our journey.

This one we spotted at The Great Wall

This one was on the revolving door in our hotel in Beijing

This one was found at the 2008 Olympics site to apparently stop visitors from walking in the flowers