quirky Archives - On The Road Now

January 28, 2023March 19, 2023

Happy Meal: Why is my morning toast smiling at me?

smiley face on toasted bread — My morning toast is smiling at me – AI art generated by MidJourney

BALI, INDONESIA – We recently moved into an unfurnished villa after several years of traveling around the world and staying in fully furnished apartments, condos, hostels, hotels and Air BnBs.

Every one of those places was outfitted with all the standard trappings. Not necessarily lavish, but we rarely lacked any of the necessities for daily living.

The villa where we stayed for the past year was totally furnished – OVER-FURNISHED, to be honest.

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February 27, 2019February 27, 2019

You named your store what? Another quirky biz name

Another curious example from our growing collection of quirky business names

DANANG, VIETNAM – Here’s another one of the curious business names we’ve run across in our travels outside the U.S.

We’ve seen a lot of business names that make us stop and wonder, “What were they thinking?”

Sometimes the odd names are the result of faulty online translation engines.

Other times they come from an effort to sound “Western” and hip…

Or a grandiose way to blow your own horn.

And sometimes they’re just odd.

Take a look at the shop pictured above…

“C+ mini Mart”

If you were going to assign your own grade, wouldn’t you give yourself an “A”?

Maybe even an “A+” if you were feeling really good about your efforts.

I certainly would!

But a “C+”?

That’s all they could muster?

Top of the class or not, at least it’s above average.

May 13, 2018July 24, 2018

Sidewalks are for walking, right? Not in Hanoi…

HANOI, VIETNAM – Sidewalks in Hanoi serve many different purposes… merchandise display space for shop stalls, seating for sidewalk restaurants, parking lot for motorcycles and bicycles (and sometimes cars), work room, kitchen, grazing space for urban livestock, and occasionally as a place for pedestrians to walk.
Continue reading “Sidewalks are for walking, right? Not in Hanoi…”