Tales from the Man who would be King

Rex Jaeschke's Personal Blog

Signs of Life: Part 23

© 2013, 2017, 2021 Rex Jaeschke. All rights reserved.

From time to time during my travels, I come across signs that I find interesting for one reason or another. Sometimes, they contain clever writing, are humorous, or remind me of some place or event. Here are some from trips to French-speaking Geneva, Switzerland; Washington State, US; and several other places.

 

I've seen this sign a number of times in French-speaking countries. Who knew that the rules forbad urinating outside the circle!

 

Some interesting names for musical groups.

 

Hmm; Hairdresser Antidote. Having a bad-hair day? Perhaps you need a hair antidote!

 

French for Between us, which made me think of the popular saying, "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas."

 

A snows sports equipment store; obviousy!

According to Wikipedia, doodah "is a placeholder name for an object, also doodad and doohickey." I know it as thingamajig.

 

An authentic Italian restaurant and wine bar in the heart of Geneva. The French translates to "a mouth a throat" while the Italian translates to "a bite a sip."

Perhaps the wine bar was where da Vinci got his inspiration for the Mona Lisa!

The M, that is almost inside a circle, hints at da Vinci's drawing, Vitruvian Man.

 

The "Red Flamingo" is just the place to buy women's handbags and shoes.

 

Switzerland has three main languages. This sign is from the side of a train, and contains the abbreviations for the Swiss National Railways: SBB (Schweizerische Bundesbahnen) in German, CFF (Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses) in French, and FFS (Ferrovie federali svizzere) in Italian.

 

There I was thinking about having a salad, until I saw the price; Holy Toledo!

When I mentioned it to the waitress, she said that it was a misprint ($10.95 instead), but they liked it so much, they left it there to see who was actually reading the menu. And if anyone was willing to pay that much, well, that was OK too!

 

Toilet signs at a botanic garden.     

The stamen and carpel are the male and female "naughty bits," respectively, involved in flower reproduction.

 

This advice sounds all well and good in theory, but how would YOU react when faced with a mountain lion?

 

Come on now; admit it. You actually kissed a dog, didn't you?

 

"Pizza, panini, salads & breakfast items dispensed in an informal setting."

Personally, I'm leaning towards the pepperoni pizza!

And, YES, the letter i does look a bit like the leaning tower.

 

What caught my eye was the foundation date, 33 AD, one possible year of the crucification of Jesus of Nazareth.

 

The father sure seems to be holding the baby at arm's length! Can you say "stinky diaper?"

 

A sign on the outside wall of my hotel room block in Oxford, England. "A fitting place for Rex," you might be thinking.

In the heart of Oxford sit the remains of Oxford Castle next door to which is a veddy up-scale hotel, Malmaison Oxford, located in what was once "Her Majesty's Prison Oxford." In the main building, groups of four or five adjacent prison cells were combined to form each room/suite. The old stairwells and guard walkways have been preserved.

 

Comments (1) -

  • Ava Wolfram

    5/23/2021 4:42:34 AM | Reply

    Your sign selection is interesting, the explanations educate and add trivia. Found this to be an interesting blog post.
    Thanks Rex!!

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