When in doubt, just say "Pokemon"
Posted by Megan Roney on Friday, June 26, 2009
Last night in a moment of confusion, I managed to get myself locked out of the hotel room. I jumped in the elevator (which is lined with a matt displaying the day of the week in English and Mandarin, and changed everyday) and hoped the one receptionist who speaks English was on shift. She was and by the time I had ridden the elevator back up to my floor, a maintenance person was waiting at my door to let me into my room. These people have an incredible sense of efficiency.
For example, the night we arrived in Nanjing, my roommate, Carly unpluged the television set in our hotel room so she could plug in her computer. I can only assume that the house keepers discovered that we had done this while cleaning, because a few nights later, two members of the hotel staff knocked on our door. Carly opened the door to them, giving me no warning and as they walked in I had to pull a pillow across my lap due to the fact that I was only wearing a pair of lime green boxer briefs and a t shirt.
Neither of them spoke English, but they managed to mime that they were there to fix our television situation. The guy attempted to look at the mass of wires hidden by the bedside table, but couldn't really get a good look due to the plethora of snack food we had spilling off the table. He began handing items to me which I placed beside me on the bed. Once the table top had been cleared, he pulled the table away from the wall causing a whole second truck load of snacks that were hidden in the table shelving to spill out on top of him. I immediately began to dig him out in embarrassment, so he could continue.
Carly and I looked to each other in confusion as the two maintenance workers began speaking rapidly in Mandarin. Then they both left and returned dragging a heavy duty extension cord that could have easily encircled the Colosseum. The plugged this in and soon we were watching cartoons, to which Carly excitedly exclaimed "Pokemon!". At this point the staff members lost it, and began rolling with laughter. This made Carly and I laugh, and the whole situation was pretty hilarious. I guess Pokemon is a universal language.
For example, the night we arrived in Nanjing, my roommate, Carly unpluged the television set in our hotel room so she could plug in her computer. I can only assume that the house keepers discovered that we had done this while cleaning, because a few nights later, two members of the hotel staff knocked on our door. Carly opened the door to them, giving me no warning and as they walked in I had to pull a pillow across my lap due to the fact that I was only wearing a pair of lime green boxer briefs and a t shirt.
Neither of them spoke English, but they managed to mime that they were there to fix our television situation. The guy attempted to look at the mass of wires hidden by the bedside table, but couldn't really get a good look due to the plethora of snack food we had spilling off the table. He began handing items to me which I placed beside me on the bed. Once the table top had been cleared, he pulled the table away from the wall causing a whole second truck load of snacks that were hidden in the table shelving to spill out on top of him. I immediately began to dig him out in embarrassment, so he could continue.
Carly and I looked to each other in confusion as the two maintenance workers began speaking rapidly in Mandarin. Then they both left and returned dragging a heavy duty extension cord that could have easily encircled the Colosseum. The plugged this in and soon we were watching cartoons, to which Carly excitedly exclaimed "Pokemon!". At this point the staff members lost it, and began rolling with laughter. This made Carly and I laugh, and the whole situation was pretty hilarious. I guess Pokemon is a universal language.
Tags: pokemon
After a while of traveling in foreign countries, you begin to realize that it's not just your luggage that can get lost. When you don't speak the language, you loose your ability to speak. If you can't decipher the written word, you loose your ability to read. And if you can't read the signs to know where you're going, you yourself can get lost. It can be a bit overwhelming, and at times humiliating, but I'm sure even Odysseus experienced frustration on his adventurous travels. This blog is my account of my travels. Hopefully, my blunders will assure others that they are not the only ones lost in translation.
