thing mediterranean and the next thing i mediterranean and the next thing i know, inland, in a port. thing i know, inland, in a port. and thing i know, inland, in a port, and! thing i know, inland, in a port, and i found out it was the port, and i found out it was the port of algiers. in north africa the port of algiers. in north africa. very scary for an 18 year old boy who had never been 18 year old boy who had never been out 18 year old boy who had never been out of north sheils. yeah, but we been out of north sheils. yeah, but we just been out of north sheils. yeah, but we just got on with it. you know. but we just got on with it. you know. if but we just got on with it. you know, if the sergeant says jump, know, if the sergeant says jump, you say how high? and we ust jump, you say how high? and we just did jump, you say how high? and we just did whatever we were told to do. just did whatever we were told to do, and that s the easiest way to do, and that
The Story of the Grand Collective Project That Launched Yuri Gagarin Into Space 13/04/2021
A mural depicting Yuri Gagarin, created by Jorit in Odintsovo, Russia, August 2019. Photo: Jorit
When I used to live in Paris, I took the Metro to the end of the line one day and spent an afternoon wandering between Ivry and Villejuif. The area may not be as picturesque as the tourist zones of central Paris, but it has its own memorable spots, like the Yuri Gagarin Aquatic Stadium with its Olympic-length pool, perched at the intersection between Karl Marx Avenue and Yuri Gagarin Street.
Ivry-sur-Seine, a Communist stronghold since the 1920s, was then also the location of a housing complex called Cité Gagarine, inaugurated by the man himself during a visit to France in 1963. The municipal government knocked it down in 2019, having put up posters for the demolition that bore the message “Good Bye Gagarine” in English with Soviet-style lettering. You could hardly blame the