Signs that have made me smile...

Let us always meet each other with a smile for a smile is the beginning of love. 
  --Mother Teresa

Signs... a message to protect and alert you to danger, to give new insights, to make you laugh. Here are just a few I have seen that have added a chuckle to my day. What messages do you see or better yet, create to make the world smile?

Maybe this doesn't look so funny at first glance but just wait. This is Tresa, my wonderful friend who I had many hilarious adventures with. She came to Doha, and I asked her if she could make a sign for a party we were having at the "Singing Sand Dunes," a place where you slide down the dunes and the entire dune rumples. Well, we laughed a long time because she accidentally wrote "Sining Sand Dunes." She forgot the G and even though Sining is not spelled right (It should be "sinning", we roared with laughter. Tresa died about a year later from ovarian cancer. BUT she never stopped laughing and seeing the joy that any little escapade or person could give her. We always joked that we could act like we were 14-year-olds together. We worked together well and got a lot done, but a joke, laugh (We both snort--a funny honking that accidentally comes out of your nose when you laugh) were never far away. I am sure the angels up in heaven are all laughing a lot more with Tresa by their sides.

Here are both the signs.

Once you go out of Doha, you could definitely happen upon a camel. It has happened to me.  Every time I see it, I remember I am not at home anymore.

I have always loved penguins--ever since Mrs. Seiler read us Mr. Popper's Penguins in second grade. I have to say it was so much fun to see rocks covered with penguins in the ocean just south of Cape Town, South Africa. I guess the sign was there to make sure none of them got loose!

Someone being creative in a cafe in Plettenberg, South Africa. I like the way this person gives so much advice in just a few words--almost like a poem.

Another sign to remember you are a foreigner in a strange land. Hippos are not your ordinary roamers on the road. 

On a bike ride around Montagu, South Africa, I spotted this road sign in the small town. The story behind it is that a woman allowed her cats to roam around the town, but was worried one of them would get hurt in the traffic. She decided to petition to have a special sign made for her two cats. Her request was approved and the cat sign was put up. The happy story was that her cats were always safe on the streets of Montagu, South Africa.

I guess this sign doesn't look that funny, but it shows a South African saying, "Now Now," that means, "Don't worry I am coming" or "Your request or question will happen soon" or "By and by it will happen. Just be patient." So when you say "Now, Now" in South Africa, it does not mean immediately as the words infer. It means "Just by and by." And you never know how long that means. 

I would normally say "bump," not "hump" to alert you to a bump in the road. I think it comes from  the Middle East having camels with humps?

Another sign I see often on the roads here. Men wear thobes in the Middle East so you wouldn't  see it at home. 

A sign in Provence, France on the road to alert you to all the sheep. 

Loved the creativity of this sign maker in Malaga, Spain at a small cafe where we had some hot chocolate.  I agree completely!

This vendor/entrepreneur in a marketplace in Marrakech, Morocco made us all smile. And did we go to his store? Of course! Humor and wit always go a long way. For some more smiles about Marrakech vendors, here is a blog about winding around the honeycomb stalls: http://www.openingthesky.com/2018/10/morocco-part-2-marrakech-ven.html

When we arrived at his stall, there were more signs to make us chuckle. I was impressed! I didn't buy anything, but we all laughed and congratuleated him on his business acumen. 

To be aware of stray tortoises in Montagu, South Africa. Not your usual reminder!