Doing it in the minivan

Parisian authorities block hookers from setting up shop roadside.

Published February 6, 2001 8:26PM (EST)

It's not uncommon to stroll the arrondissements of Paris and observe couples necking on park benches, or making out while leaning against parked cars. With all this love in the air, you'd think there would be little demand for prostitution.

But there just aren't enough Brigitte Bardots to go around, apparently. Paris residents have gotten sick and tired of the proliferation of local hookers in the Bois de Vincennes just southeast of the Bastille. According to the daily Le Parisien, the enterprising "putains" ("whores") have resorted to working out of minivans parked at the side of the road. A lighted candle on the dashboard signifies that the "office" is open for business -- and adds some classy ambience to the proceedings.

What this also means is that when a woman takes her children out for a nature walk, the little ones might also catch a glimpse of a rocking minivan, perhaps even a couple of legs sticking out a steamed-up window or a wiggling, hairy man's ass.

Authorities say they've solved the blight by planting rows of short wooden stakes along the road, effectively stopping the hookers from setting up shop. Parisian children must now fall back on other methods of learning about sex -- such as art, music, film, theater, literature or their father's live-in mistress.


By Jack Boulware

Jack Boulware is a writer in San Francisco and author of "San Francisco Bizarro" and "Sex American Style."

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