Chinese cities host an array of signs, locale names, and menu items boasting humorous English renderings. Recently, government programs have been set up with the goal of eradicating "Chinglish." This interesting NYTimes article mentions there was a campaign to fix English signs in Beijing in time for the 2008 Olympics, but it focuses primarily on the current Shanghai Commision for the Management of Language Use's two-year-and-ongoing battle against Chinglish's presence in Shanghai. While it is apparent that Chinglish is a source of embarassment for many Chinese -- hence the commisions -- there are some, whom I'm assuming are mainly non-Chinese, who not only find Chinglish endearing and hilarious, but also view it as an important linguistic relic that supposedly offers a peek into the Chinese mind. There's even a German lady who's currently working on her PhD in Chinglish, once again proving that you really can obtain a doctorate in just about anything.
Because the New York Times appears to have prevented the copying/saving of its photo files, here's a link to its Chinglish slideshow:http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2010/05/03/world/asia/20100503_CHINGLISH.html
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