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Top Obscura
21 Amazing Bangalore Breakfast Dishes 
The Creepiest Amusement Park of All Time? 
China’s all-time favorite (and all-time darkest?) comic book: Sanmao 
Classic Chinese Torture Methods (and their cute names) 
Amazing Old Bollywood Poster Shops 
Beijing’s incredible (and completely fake) Disneyland 
Why Chinese People Eat Sea Horse 
The 38th Reich: Korean Nazi Cosplay 
India’s Incredibly Cool Hand-Drawn Movie Posters 
Prosthetic Noses, Red Wigs, and Whiteface… American Characters in Chinese Films 
Why Chinese People Eat Ants 
This Hindu God has 1,000 Vaginas! 
Castration Classes at the Beijing Eunuch Culture Exhibition Hall 
Nazi Fashion in China 
What the Fortune Teller Told Me (Hong Kong) 
Why Chinese People Eat Deer Penis 
One Ghostly Cambodian Ruin 
About Andy Deemer & AsiaObscura 
The Sick Collector and His 1000 Pairs of Shoes 
Beijing’s Single Most Horrific Meal 
The Insane Monkey Bar in Tokyo 
A Huge Pile of Gorgeous Old Thai Movie Posters 
Learn How to Speak North Korean 
Whoring in Chiang Mai 
Why Chinese People Eat Snake as Medicine 
The Best Place to Eat and Poop, Together! 
Those Creepy Japanese Videos, Finally Explained 
Philadelphia CheeseSteak Ice Cream - Awesomely Steampunk Portable Corn Roaster
A Huge New Horde of Hand-drawn Indian Movie Posters 
Pyongyang Too: A Tribute to Guy Delisle 
The New iOS Game From the Creators of AsiaObscura 
18 Terrible Moments from a Taoist Hell 
Red Onion-Flavored Red Wine 
Gorgeously Gory Paintings in a Burmese Temple 
Beijing’s Dongyue Temple and Their 19 Incredible Taoist Gods 
American Imperialist Bastards in a North Korean Comic Book 
Sweet gruesome statue asking for donations 
A Postcard from Erenhot 
On Horse Meat Sashimi 
The Taj Mahal… Murder, Incest, and Fratricide 
Small Children Feeding Live Animals to Tigers in a Chinese Zoo 
Outrageously Cute Korean Cosplay: The 21 Favorites - Why Chinese People Eat Fried Worms
A Sweet New Batch of Indian Movie Posters 
Antilia: The Most Gratuitous House in Mumbai 
Another Diana Pose at the Taj Mahal 
The Eko Nugroho Flower Suit Lives On 
Porn, Rats, and Antique Projectors at Sri Lanka’s Classic Cinemas 
Plants vs Zombies, The Chinese Knockoff Toys
Category Archives: Lost in Translation
Lost in Translation, Sweet Movies and Wild Books
Metropolis finally finds the right marketing campaign…
As currently promoted and sold, of course, in India.
Copyright Carelessness, Lost in Translation
Lady Di’s Forgotten Career?
Found in a Yangon, Myanmar sidewalk bookstall.
Lost in Translation
Two Girls, One Cup, Two Feeling
Sorry, the Two Girls One Cup video isn't here. But there's plenty of stomach-churning awesomeness here! Something about this Burmese billboard made me feel a little queasy...
Extraordinary Eats, Lost in Translation
Tastes Like Chicken
Since moving to India, we've seen a lot of Julie. And this is what Julie saw offered in Koramangala today.
Lost in Translation
Uighur Poetry
Local Xinjiang menu doubles as undiscovered Situationist/Dada manifesto... All seen at 都市同心阁 (also known as "Concentric Urban Court" or "One-Hearted City Pavilion"), Gongti Beilu. Avoid the dodgy 串。
Lost in Translation
Strange Warnings Posted Outside a Beijing Toilet
He was desperate to cover all his bases. Or maybe this was just a really twisted shitter.
Lost in Translation
A Sweet Series of Chinglishy Gift Fails
Christmas wrapping paper always works well. Especially for Papa Pickles' belated birthday present... But the wrapping paper turned out to be a little more generic than we'd expected. And the greeting card, which Woo bought in Bangalore, turned out to have a rather unexpected adhesive. That's right, as in the maxi pads. At least we didn't have to ...
AO Events, Extraordinary Eats, Lost in Translation
Sheep Placenta AIDS Soup
Sure, every restaurant may have a maggot-filled dish called Insect Story, and what's a Chinese restaurant without a Jacopetti-inspired Monkey Head offering (even if it is just a bowl of fried mushrooms). I don't know, however, of a single other Beijing restaurant that boasts acquired immune deficiency syndrome sheep placenta soup. That's right: AIDS soup, the most ...
Extraordinary Eats, Lost in Translation
Not Just Pork Balls, But…
Dim sum offering, a few days back.
Consumerism, Lost in Translation
Black Friday Special: Four Products You Shouldn’t Live Without
Trauma Relieving Spray Krack Clit A Free Shart
Lost in Translation
A Slightly Unfortunate Sign Mishap
Seen at Xian's Hong Kong Star Restaurant. Or ratS tnaruatseR, as it is.
Historical Wonders, Lost in Translation, Sweet Movies and Wild Books
Cute Little Cultural Revolution “Learn Chinese” Booklet
The cultural revolution-era "Learning English" book blew my mind, but when I stumbled on this little "Learn Chinese" booklet the other day, I was touched. It represented such a different side of the Cultural Revolution. Instead of war/hate/fear of the "Learn English" book, this one radiates with the hope, promise, and togetherness that ...
Extraordinary Eats, Lost in Translation
Another Mind-Blowingly Incredible Menu
After the insane Cultural Revolution restaurant menu, I didn't think I'd ever be impressed by mistranslated food titles again. Boy, was I wrong. Below are some of my new favorite dishes from our local duck restaurant. One dish wasn't mistranslated at all. And it's my favorite... spicy, awesome, and a weird unexpected ...
Historical Wonders, Lost in Translation, Sweet Movies and Wild Books
Pages from an Amazing English Textbook
Back in the cultural revolution, China was in turmoil. Almost anything could get you in trouble. Han Xin, a blacklisted artist, told me that painting the sun the wrong shade of red would mean jail time. Absolutely everything had to be in unquestionable service to Mao and a Maoist China. The only plays were ...
Extraordinary Eats, Lost in Translation
Possibly the Best Menu of All Time
Beijing's Cultural Revolution Restaurant has one of the most bizarre stage shows (video here) and some entirely inappropriate fashion statements, too, but it also has one of the worst best menus I've yet seen. Here are some of my favorite dishes... Classic, eh?
Lost in Translation, Strange Tourism
On Being Chinese-looking in China
Waldo in China sketch from Deep Thinkings I'm having a conversation (albeit one-sided) with the neighbor about a leak in our ceiling, with the cab driver about the reasons for the traffic, to the butcher about the right cut of meat. In every case, I nod my head, "uh-huh, uh-huh," hoping that I will glean something ...
Lost in Translation
Sign from a Beijing Supermarket
We haven't seen this Jingkelong supermarket sign ourselves, but reader Randi sent it in, adding, "Apparently, their marketing strategy is to appeal to customers at two different ends of the spectrum -- or maybe this is a brilliant plan to encourage people with a bad habit to try to offset its effects." Classic. ...
Lost in Translation
Disgusting Chinglish from a Tasty Buffet
Not that many nights ago, WooLand and I were thrilled to be invited to one of the great linguistic banquets of the season. Government ministers, foreign diplomats, prominent magazine editors -- it was a real who's who of language and culture. And then we saw what was for dinner... Oh, boy... ...
Lost in Translation
Non-beach Things from Beijing’s Fake Beach
They're strict about this.... They were out of this.... We didn't understand this.... This was the only way out.... All this, and more, at Crab Island.
Lost in Translation
Cute Subway Sign
I thought this was so endearing...."Please take care oldster and child" on the Beijing subway escalators.
Lost in Translation
16 Awesome Menu Items
A sampling from the menus we've seen in the last year....And, for Woo...
Lost in Translation
Learn How to Speak North Korean
On our recent trip to Pyongyang, we picked up this incredible guide to speaking Korean -- clearly with a northern bent. While the first half is filled with standard small-talk favorites ("How do you do!", "I'm awfully sorry," "It really is heroic," and "It is Juche-oriented"), about halfway through, it gives up any sense of ...
Lost in Translation
Hungry for a Kaka Burger
I'm so sad this Taiyuan fast food joint was closed for Chinese New Year... I really, honestly craved a burger. And a Kaka Burger? Oh that would have hit the spot!