The official Facebook page of HaMerotz LaMillion (The Amazing Race Israel) surprised fans this week with a promotional image written entirely in Cantonese Chinese, challenging viewers to translate a playful message tied to the show’s Hong Kong episodes.
The Cantonese Puzzle#
The post, shared on March 11, featured a promotional image with bold Cantonese characters reading: “你哋真係以為我哋會話 今晚九點半開始” alongside the HaMerotz LaMillion 2026 logo and host Yehuda Levi. The Hebrew caption read: “We couldn’t hold back! Translate and discover a huge hint for tonight’s elimination.”
The Cantonese text translates to: “You really thought we’d tell you it starts at 9:30 tonight?” – a tongue-in-cheek scheduling tease connected to the show’s regular 21:30 Tuesday time slot. The playful misdirection hinted at a schedule change for the elimination episode while leaning into the Hong Kong setting.
Fans Race to Decode the Message#
The post generated 125 reactions and 45 comments, with viewers eagerly employing various methods to crack the Cantonese text. Several commenters turned to AI tools for help, with one fan writing “Hahaha, Gemini says you tricked us!” and another simply thanking “artificial intelligence” while sharing a screenshot of Google Translate identifying the language as Cantonese and rendering the Hebrew translation.
One particularly detailed comment identified the text as Cantonese (a dialect of Chinese), provided a full translation, noted Yehuda Levi in the image, and described the post as “a humorous promotional poster that uses a foreign language to confuse viewers or hint at one of the race destinations.”
Other fans provided their own English translation: “You guys really thought we would say starting at half past nine tonight.”
Season 10 in Hong Kong#
The Cantonese teaser coincided with the show’s Hong Kong leg (Leg 3), which aired across four episodes from March 3 to March 10, 2026. Teams arriving from Croatia faced a series of challenges steeped in Hong Kong culture, including matching Chinese characters on traditional chop seals along the famous Central-Mid-Levels Escalators, feeding dumplings with oversized chopsticks at Kee Hing Restaurant in Kowloon Bay, and performing snake-style kung fu with a live snake at the historic King Yin Lei mansion.
The leg also featured teams riding Hong Kong’s iconic double-decker tramways, known locally as “Ding Ding,” while spotting Pit Stop signs. The leg concluded at Wan Chai Pier, from which teams departed by ferry to Macau for Leg 4, airing March 14.
The Cantonese teaser was posted ahead of the dramatic elimination episode on March 10, in which fan-favorites Ron Horvitz and Mitav Ziv were eliminated from the race. The engaged couple had been considered among the strongest teams since finishing first in Montenegro, but a critical mistake on the Hong Kong tram mission cost them the race. Host Yehuda Levi told them at the mat: “I was sure you’d make it to the final.”
A History of Asian Adventures#
Season 10, which premiered on January 24, 2026, is hosted by Yehuda Levi and airs on Channel 12. The season began in Montenegro and Albania before heading to Croatia and then East Asia.
HaMerotz LaMillion has visited Asia in previous seasons as well. Season 9 (2024) took teams to South Korea, Vietnam, and Mongolia, while the very first season included legs in Vietnam, Hong Kong, and Japan. The Hong Kong return in Season 10 gives the show a chance to revisit one of its original Asian destinations with a fresh set of challenges.
Why This Matters#
The use of Cantonese in mainstream Israeli television marketing is a small but notable cultural crossover moment. For the Chinese-speaking community in Israel, seeing their language featured prominently on a major Israeli reality show – and watching fellow Israelis engage enthusiastically with it – represents a meaningful moment of cultural visibility.
It also reflects the growing accessibility of language tools: the comment section effectively became a collaborative translation exercise, with viewers using AI chatbots, Google Translate, and their own knowledge to decode the message within minutes of posting.
Sources: HaMerotz LaMillion Facebook Page, Mako
