ever since i came to canada and lived in toronto, i have always been intrigued by this rainbow mural painted on a tunnel. especially during the winter months when the city is devoid of colours, the rainbow seems to cheer up the city folks. this can be seen when you're driving north of the don valley parkway and like the real rainbows, when you're driving at 110 kmph, it disappears from view as fast as you could spot it.
i have attempted to photograph this from the first time i've seen it, but instamatic cameras weren't meant for that speed of drive by and the later digital p&s produced only blurred images.
there's a story behind this rainbow. a man named berg came to canada from norway some 40 years ago. a lady friend of his died in a car accident in the parkway near this tunnel; he was so sad over that loss so he honoured her by painting this rainbow. what he didn't know was that it was illegal to do it and every time he would come to visit the tunnel, he saw that it had been painted over (by the city's maintenance), so he just painted the rainbow again. he did it a number of times before the police came and arrested him, and that was the last time he painted the rainbow on the tunnel. the officers let him finished painting it before leading him away.
over the years, the colours faded, but not enough so that it can still be seen by the motorists despite the graffiti that had been painted over it. then our city "woke" up and decided to spiffy it up. in fact it was done sometime in the spring or summer and i have a photo of this in october with fresh graffiti on it. last saturday, when i took this shot, the graffiti's been painted over as you can see.
thank you for your visits and kind comments, ladies and gents. so behind again but will try to catch up as much as i can.
@karenann - oh, my goodness, you're here, too! is it Christmas yet? how come i'm getting nice surprises today? :-) thank you, KA.
@claireuk - thank you, claire. yes, it took 30-some years for them to come to their senses. the guy was doing the city a favour and they won't take it. sometimes i think we are run by idiots in this city. :-D well, probably not all of them, but some. hehe!
so sad for Berg in his grief -- but what a great tribute -- and bravo for him for continuing to paint it! (and poo on the police for arresting him - -and bravo for the City finally keeping it). Great shot! And most cheerful!!
@salza - thank you, sally.
@catsmeowb - you're back! so glad. i missed you. hope all's well now. how's malcolm doing? thank you, camille.
@claireuk - thank you, claire. yes, it took 30-some years for them to come to their senses. the guy was doing the city a favour and they won't take it. sometimes i think we are run by idiots in this city. :-D well, probably not all of them, but some. hehe!
@sarasdadandmom - thank you, terry.