Tag Archives: #language

Avalanche

The road to Milford Sound was treacherous.  It had just been cleared of the snow which blocked the road and kept me in Glenorchy those extra two nights.  The mountains were so steep, so snow-covered that the entire area was … Continue reading

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Edinburgh

On the east coast of the South Island, I stayed in a cool college town called Dunedin (pronounced “dun-EE-din”.)   The name has nothing to do with the Dúnedain, as one might expect, but in fact comes from Dùn Èideann which … Continue reading

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Serious

Near Lake Taupo are the Huka Falls. Maybe — between Multnomah, Yellowstone, Kegon, and all of Yosemite — I’ve become hard to impress.I did learn the “huka” means “foam” in Māori.  Clever. It’s difficult to see clearly in this picture, … Continue reading

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Tongues

In Rotorua, enjoyed a Māori hāngi which is a feast cooked in a buried pit (much like a Hawaiian luau.) After arriving on the Mitai’s tribal land, we watched the village warriors paddle a waka down the river, carrying torches.  Then we gathered … Continue reading

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Toponyms

If someone came to California for the first time with no sense of history or language, they’d probably say something like, “Wow.  There sure are a lot of places with names that start with ‘Los’ or ‘San’ around here!” The … Continue reading

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Aotearoa

Visited the excellent Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa.  Appreciated this map inlaid on the floor as it matched my perspective:  looking from New Zealand back up toward China to the left and California to the right. New Zealand … Continue reading

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Accent

If a Kiwi is saying something to you that sounds like “ear big”, trust me.  They’re saying “airbag”.

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Purple

I spent the day hiking around 紫金山 (Zĭjīnshān meaning “Purple-Gold Mountain.”) Sun Yat-sen is an important figure in the founding of the Republic of China and is considered the “Father of the Nation.”  Apparently he loved the Purple Mountain and, … Continue reading

Posted in 南京 | Tagged | 2 Comments

Misleading II

Sometimes my brain gets ahead of itself and tries to parse Pīnyīn as English.  I couldn’t help but see “of Animal U.” every time I glanced at this subway station’s name.  (It’s really Xīn mófàn mǎlù.)

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Faerie

Just before arriving in Nanjing, my train stopped at this station.  Nothing makes you feel like you’re living Beyond the Wall in Westeros than a seeing a place translates as “Forest of the Eternals.” (Apologies for the potato quality.)

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Boyi

Hungry after visiting the Old Dragon’s Head — and desperate to recharge my phone — I stumbled on a strange restaurant in town called Boyi [sic] Music BBQ Bar of the “crazy crap on the wall” school of decor.  Over … Continue reading

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Head

This is the 老龙头 (“Old Dragon’s Head”) where the Great Wall of China dead-ends into the Bohai Sea.   I enjoyed looking down, right off the edge of Ancient China into the sea.    Within the fort was a stone maze … Continue reading

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Ferry

I flew in to Tianjin for the weekend.  The name literally means “Heaven’s ferry” and it’s the fourth most populous city in China, but a lot of people have only ever heard of it from this line from Ocean’s 13: … Continue reading

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Ice

This is a photo taken out my window at the Shangri-La Hotel overlooking the frozen Songhua River with the sun setting over the city skyline in the distance. I’m here in Harbin for their famous annual Ice Festival.  The place is a sleepy … Continue reading

Posted in 哈尔滨 | Tagged | 1 Comment

Wūrǎn

Subway stations here are running this ad campaign against pollution.  In the corner of this one, it says 污染猛于虎 (wūrǎn měng yú hǔ or “pollution is fiercer than a tiger.”)  This one says 污染毒于蛇 (wūrǎn dú yú shé or “pollution is more … Continue reading

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