Old signs and abandoned buildings

Abandoned storefront in Rodez, France

A lot of my favorite finds never make it to my blog. 

As most "France" bloggers do, I tend to focus on the scenic: pastoral views, architectural wonders, and, of course, the mandatory doors and windows. (Sometimes I try to resist the latter, but who can, really?)

But what I actually love tracking down the most are old signs, abandoned buildings, and assorted weird places that wouldn't make the tourist guides.

Girdles ("gaines") must have been more important than lingerie at the time

This sign for Triumph Lingerie, a perfectly modern brand,  is displayed on a still-operating lingerie shop in a nearby town. I like that they have chosen not to take it down -- or just haven't gotten around to it.

There's always a story...

More recently abandoned buildings, especially businesses, always make me feel melancholy. I wonder what the story was: dwindling trade, no one to take over after retirement, even a death? I may like the photos, but it doesn't mean I like the situation.

An old sign of the scenic variety

One finds, in France, a number of old advertising signs placed directly on houses, or even painted on them. I've often been curious about this practice, and I also enjoy looking up the brand if I don't know of it.

But with so many of the letters hidden behind the leaves, I wasn't able to find out what the one above was for.

Does anybody out there know?

UPDATE FOUR HOURS LATER

Although I hadn't heard from her for a while, I suspected that this would be the type of mystery that Susan from Days on the Claise would solve, or at least help me solve. She was able to decipher that the top word was "HUILE," or (motor) oil, and suggested the brand might be HART.

That sped up my research considerably. The brand was not HART, but HAFA, and it is still a going concern -- just shows you how much I'm up on my motor oils. 

This led me to finding a full photo of the same ad, on the blog Fragments de Roanne.

Photo courtesy of Dominique Thoral

I had been intrigued by the latest photo's on Dominique's blog, a series of "abri-bus," or covered bus stops, and was not that surprised to find out the blogger is a truly accomplished photographer who has done some exhibits.

Website: Choses Communes by Dominique Thoral

Paris 1: Les Douches, la Galerie

Entrance to Les Douches, la Galerie

As a student in France in the 1980s, I was always fascinated, and a bit perplexed, by the many municipal bath and shower facilities I saw -- especially in Paris.

For some reason or another, I even ended up using one once -- I think a youth hostel I was staying in only had toilets, not showers, and we were guided to the city showers.

I thought they were a thing of the past, but before writing this post, I learned that there are still 17 operating municipal shower facilities in Paris. There is even an official video about them on Daily Motion (all in French.) And according to the newspaper Libération, their popularity is on the upswing, as users include people trying to save money any way they can, including on hot water.

Be that as it may....

...I didn't start my Easter weekend in Paris off with a public shower. My husband had scoped out a photo exhibit of shots of New York, so we headed off to Les Douches, La Galerie. 

It was an interesting show, albeit just enough to whet one's appetite for photos of New York City. I was especially interested to see some photos by the mysterious Vivian Maier, and hadn't realized that this gallery had housed her Paris exhibition in 2013. 

No doubt here as to what this place used to be

It was fascinating to see how this gallery has kept its "public shower" atmosphere. 

The New York photo show is open until May 22nd, and entrance is free -- but showers are not included.