Although getting a tattoo in a foreign script of a country that you’re visiting sounds very cool, you should be wary. Many times, people have ended up getting raw deals when they got a tattoo that they didn’t understand, and only later realized how wrong the tattoo that they had done actually was.
Of course, by that point in time its too late!
Here’s the bottom line: If you really have your heart set on getting a tattoo in a foreign language, be sure to do your research first and get second opinions if possible. Don’t just jump into it unless you’d like to find out that the Chinese characters that should have spelt out your name actually ended up spelling out ‘smelly fish’ or something like that.
To avoid falling victim to these problems, what you need to do is make certain that you fully understand the meaning behind whatever foreign language you’ve opted for. Granted, this could mean pouring over the internet and various dictionaries, but very often you’ll find that all you really need to do is ask.
Ask the people at your hotel, ask waiters at a restaurant. Ask anyone and everyone you encounter whether or not the foreign language characters that you’re interest in really mean what you think that they mean.
If you find that the overwhelming majority answer yes, then go ahead and get the tattoo. However, if you find that it isn’t what you expected, it is about time that you figured out what the tattoo you desire really does look like, and then get that!
Source: Be Very Careful Of Tattoos That You Don’t Understand
