Monday, June 15, 2015

Des Commerçants

One sees many signs & advertisements for businesses both large & small. There are of course the realestate adverts which one finds regularly on buildings & in windows. 


Then there are all the shop windows, the pâtissières & the boulangeries & all of the many others local enterprises. I do love shop windows but even more I love the petits commerçants or the small businesses one finds right in French homes.


For example I love the stone in this window holding the affichés or flyers advertising a chambre de hôte within.


Or this tiny sign painted in a window in beautiful traditional French script. The meaning is a play on words for the French phrase méli-mélo which means hodgepodge or jumble. On certain days of the week the owner opens her door & welcomes visitors to her small shop in the front room of her home. And you guessed it, she offers her customers a hodgepodge of merchandise, some antiques & some gently used items as well as a wonderful mismatched collection of old linens & lace.



There is also this window where a gentleman sells chickens, rabbits & ducks as well as the occasional bouquet of flowers from his home.



You might wonder about the photo below since there is no sign to indicate a bussness. This is where I went with my French friend on Saturday to buy eggs. No there is no sign, you simply need to know the farmer. You unlatch the door & enter with your recycled egg cartons & there on an old enamel table are eggs for the taking. You get the number that you need & leave your payment in a cash drawer in the table.



We didn't see anyone but the beautifully  plumed chickens roaming about & the sound of a rooster crowing in the background. That for me was the most magical way to go shopping for eggs.

If this seems like a dream to you head over to Paulita's 
to see what other Francophiles have to say.

10 comments:

  1. What a wonderful sense of place you get with these photos. So much detail that so many of us would miss. I especially like the story about buying eggs.

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  2. Truly magical and I wish I could buy my eggs the same way:) Kisses

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  3. Sally, I agree that your pictures are magical. Like you're taking pictures in a fairy tale. Thanks for sharing. And thanks for playing along with Dreaming of France. Here’s my Dreaming of France meme

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  6. Love these beautiful advertisements. Oh my. In France, they even do ads in a gently magical way.

    Here's my Dreaming of France post.

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  7. Wow -- these spots are beautiful. I love how you can visit and get your eggs and leave payment behind and how people have small businesses in the home with simple alerts on the window. Lovely, Sally.

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  8. You've captured that special something as usual! I will feel positively cheated the next time I pick up a dozen eggs, even if they are free range from Whole Foods. It just ain't the same!

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  9. Those photos you have captured are like something in fairy tales. So charming! Especially the third one and the last one are my favorite (*^_^*)!

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