Japan: June 10-19, 2018. Google Translate

Not quite whole conversations.  Not quite complete translations.  Often, however, I could get enough to see the gist of what a person was saying or what a sign said or what was offered on the menu.  Clicking on the icon, positioning the "PLACE TEXT HERE" to be over the characters, a Harry Potter like dancing translation appeared on the screen. It seems different characters mean something different in different contexts, so words shifted magically as I moved the camera around ever so slightly.  The following is a WW2 memorial for Japanese soldiers killed by the Russians.





And below is a sign in a parking lot. 




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Japan: June 10-19, 2018. The Five Principles

Image
The Five Principles for living are posted at the entry of the Golden Temple.  Read Up to Down, Left to Right, the sign appears as follows: 1.  (The most important). Be kind to and show respect for all living things.  Our guide, Takaaki, stressed that this included insects, even mosquitoes.  2. Do not steal.  3. Do not engage in sexual improprieties.  4. Do not lie.  5. Do not drink alcohol. 
Read more

Japan: June 10-19, 2018. Signs, so Dramatic, so helpful

Image
I found the signs in Japan to be helpful and quite graphic.  The one that first caught my eye and had me want to photograph the signs was one I never got -- it passed me by too quickly. It was a picture of a child running with a horrified expression on his face.  There was a large red star drawn behind the illustration of the youth with the center right on his lower back.  The message to both children and drivers was clear: Look out For Children/Cars. The sign was similar to the following (but with the red star indicating a possible impact of car/child). More instructions with people seemed clear in context:  Definately no bike or car parking (there are restrictions on bike parking; we were instructed to only park our bikes in paid areas or in front of shops in which we were shopping or we could face our bikes being impounded.)   Other interesting signs showed what kinds of food was sold:  Or exactl...
Read more

Japan: June 10-19, 2018. A Few Notable and Impressive Tourist Sites

Image
This post is, meaningfully, my very last post on our Japan visit.  While these are all wonderful and important places to see and visit, currently it simply feels somewhat obligatory to include tourist sites. The most meaningful parts of the trip for me were the vernacular (which some people find mundane); for it was here in the common, everyday experience, that I learned more about Japanese people and customs.  Many of the images below are included in previous posts; this is just a blog post that summarizes the "bucket list" items, if you will, that we saw on this trip to Japan. Golden Pavilion : This was the grandest of all for the shimmering gold three-story building.  Certainly this was a surprise to round the corner and see this exquisite sight.  There were acres of gardens to be tended.  I saw a single gardener clipping a bush; when I commented about him to our guide, the guide said it was a great privilege and a great honor to be a gardener at this...
Read more