If it wasn't for Yuri Gagarin, I never would have stopped.
I had plans to meet up with one of my coworkers from my previous job today, have a bite to eat and go for a beer. We'd arranged to rendezvous in New Westminster, and since I didn't have anything important planned for the day I packed up the Nikon and headed down a couple of hours in advance so that I could play tourist.
I arrived at the restaurant a bit early, so I decided to do a quick turn around the block before going in. As I rounded the second corner and headed up Begbie Street, I noticed that I was approaching the Arundel Mansions building, which frankly looked somewhat less palatial than its name would suggest.
As I went past the entrance, for whatever reason I glanced over at the door, just for a second. I walked another 20 feet, and then stopped, as my mind caught up with the input from that momentary look, then headed back to look again.
Is everyone out there familiar with Yuri Gagarin? Legendary Russian cosmonaut, the first man to reach outer space and orbit the planet? Died in a test flight accident in 1968? How he would end up in a slightly seedy looking hotel in New Westminster is a strange enough question all on its own, but next door to Ella Fitzgerald? Not to mention Lewis Carroll and Beatrix Potter, who really should be in apartments closer to A. A. Milne, creator of Winnie the Pooh. And as for classic novelists Antoine St. Exupery and Joseph Conrad, I can't imagine what their conversations in the elevator would be like, if in fact the Arundel Mansions enjoys the luxury of an elevator.
Oh, and Mr. A "Hilter", in #18? I'm sorry, Adolf, but if you're going to use an assumed name, you could at least do something more creative than just switching the third and fourth letters.
- Sid
Someone (or lots of people) have a good sense of whimsy. That's a really cool occupant list. I'm sure most people don't even blink when reading it, being unaware of the humour.
ReplyDeleteSadly, fame is more fleeting than I would have guessed - no one seems to know who Yuri Gagarin is, even though he scores a tie with Neil Armstrong for the most important achievement of the 20th Century. (For those of you not in agreement with the choice of those two gentlemen, I welcome rebuttal arguments. I am open to discussion regarding, say, the Wright Brothers.)
ReplyDelete- Sid