Who knew Snoop Dogg was such an influence here in Japan?!
Today we went to our favorite okonomiyaki restaurant and I'm so wishing I had a camera with me.
In previous posts I've talked about the three types of "alphabets" in the Japanese language. I left out the fourth and most recent. It's called romaji and sounds out Japanese characters using Roman letters or to us lay people, the English alphabet. This style was devised for tourists and became an official amendment to the Japanese language in the mid to late 19th century. Anyone who speaks English, Spanish or Italian can easily read romaji but only those with at least working knowledge of hiragana and katakana can correctly translate Japanese words into romaji but then again it isn't rocket science. For instance, computer turns into konpyuta and shish kabob turns into the amusing (and damn near unintelligible the first time around) shishi kababu said quickly and with no stressed syllables...shishikababu. haha. Shishikababu. I can say that all day long. Japanese lesson over kiddies.
Since romaji isn't taught in grade school, Japanese students can elect to learn romaji in college, so quite often in areas where Americans hang out shop owners will try to incorporate romaji in signs or menus, often with a cute misspelling or two. Like there is a sporting goods store down the street from my office called Himalaya but on this freakin' huge sign it is spelled "Himaraya" because in the Japanese language there is no distinct L sound so it sounds like RRrrr. I've seen countless menus offering half English half romaji remonaids and sarad but at the okonomiyaki restaurant today I saw the funniest thing to date on the Engrish menu:
Frizzled rice with pork or beef.
Frizzled rice with yakisoba.
etc.
Hah! FRIZZLED! It was the funniest misspelling yet! OMIGOSH I could just see the owner sitting down going, "Okay fry. Fry rice. Hmmmm Cook. Cooked. Fry. fry-ed? Fryed? No that doesn't look right."
A Snoop video plays on MTVJapan in the background, "So don't change the dizzle, turn it up a little..."
"Oh those Americans and their past tense verbs! Fryd?"
"...Waiting on the pizzle, the dizzle and the shizzle..."
"Fry......FRIZZLED! Yes that must be right! Okay! Frizzled rice it is!"
Haha this dialogue is even funnier if you imagine the Chinese guy from South Park...the one who owns City Wok and says, "One Shitty Beef, Shitty Pork..." Instead of City Beef and City Pork. haha.
In previous posts I've talked about the three types of "alphabets" in the Japanese language. I left out the fourth and most recent. It's called romaji and sounds out Japanese characters using Roman letters or to us lay people, the English alphabet. This style was devised for tourists and became an official amendment to the Japanese language in the mid to late 19th century. Anyone who speaks English, Spanish or Italian can easily read romaji but only those with at least working knowledge of hiragana and katakana can correctly translate Japanese words into romaji but then again it isn't rocket science. For instance, computer turns into konpyuta and shish kabob turns into the amusing (and damn near unintelligible the first time around) shishi kababu said quickly and with no stressed syllables...shishikababu. haha. Shishikababu. I can say that all day long. Japanese lesson over kiddies.
Since romaji isn't taught in grade school, Japanese students can elect to learn romaji in college, so quite often in areas where Americans hang out shop owners will try to incorporate romaji in signs or menus, often with a cute misspelling or two. Like there is a sporting goods store down the street from my office called Himalaya but on this freakin' huge sign it is spelled "Himaraya" because in the Japanese language there is no distinct L sound so it sounds like RRrrr. I've seen countless menus offering half English half romaji remonaids and sarad but at the okonomiyaki restaurant today I saw the funniest thing to date on the Engrish menu:
Frizzled rice with pork or beef.
Frizzled rice with yakisoba.
etc.
Hah! FRIZZLED! It was the funniest misspelling yet! OMIGOSH I could just see the owner sitting down going, "Okay fry. Fry rice. Hmmmm Cook. Cooked. Fry. fry-ed? Fryed? No that doesn't look right."
A Snoop video plays on MTVJapan in the background, "So don't change the dizzle, turn it up a little..."
"Oh those Americans and their past tense verbs! Fryd?"
"...Waiting on the pizzle, the dizzle and the shizzle..."
"Fry......FRIZZLED! Yes that must be right! Okay! Frizzled rice it is!"
Haha this dialogue is even funnier if you imagine the Chinese guy from South Park...the one who owns City Wok and says, "One Shitty Beef, Shitty Pork..." Instead of City Beef and City Pork. haha.
Comments