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.
