Vancouver woman captures #CherryBlossomMadness in her neighbourhood

Apr 10 2019, 6:47 am

An Instagram account and hashtag has turned into a seasonal springtime gallery of sorts for an East Vancouver resident.

LeLe Chan lives in the Hastings-Sunrise neighbourhood – one of the many areas in the city brimming with cherry blossoms this time of year.

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So much so in fact, that people regularly make special trips to her neighbourhood to snap a picture or two of the annual bloom bonanza. And it’s become #CherryBlossomMadness.

 

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Chan started documenting the cherry blossom visitors on Instagram a few years ago, along with the “hilarious things I would see happening on my street.”

In a previous interview with Daily Hive, Chan said she works from home and often sees the “silly poses and masses of people from my living room window.”

 

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At first, she said, it was confusing.

“Then it got annoying when 20-plus people at a time would stand in the middle of my lawn – or on my front steps – in order to get better selfies with the trees.”

But instead of getting mad, Chan decided to use the regular visits as entertainment.

 

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Still, some situations do get a little too personal.

Chan said she has had numerous people ring her doorbell asking to use her bathroom or step inside her house to charge their phone for a few minutes.

“There are people who come in the middle of the night, turn on giant spot lights, and photograph in the middle of the street,” she said. “Their lights often wake me up this time of year.”

For her part, Chan said she “doesn’t quite understand” why her street is so popular, but added it’s something she’s learned to live with.

“I now have a love/hate relationship with cherry blossom season as it’s so beautiful and I feel blessed to live on this street,” she added.

But the blossoms also “bring on the crazies and fills my street with heavy traffic and hundreds of strangers – not what a neighbourhood full of young kids need.”

Chan said she holds no resentment towards her neighbourhood, but just wishes visitors were more respectful of private property and people who live on the street.

To that end, Chan offered some tips to those who come to enjoy the cherry blossoms:

    1. Stay on the sidewalks and respect private property.
    2. Don’t block traffic by sitting in the middle of the street or setting up photo equipment etc in the middle of the street.
    3. Don’t pull/break the branches and flowers off the trees.
    4. Remember that people live here and that it’s normally a very quiet street. Don’t ask to use our bathrooms or pee in the back alley (yes that happens too).

Keep up with Chan’s cherry blossom documentation on Instagram.

– With files from Eric Zimmer

DH Vancouver StaffDH Vancouver Staff

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