A Thunder Bay, Ont. coffee shop was centre stage for a pair of very famous Canadians on Thursday.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and musician Bryan Adams were in town for separate appearances, but paired up to visit some local landmarks.
One of those stops was at The Persian Man, where they enjoyed some of Thunder Bay’s famous pink-frosted pastries, known as persians.
For Danny Nucci, vice president of Bennett’s Bakery Ltd., and The Persian Man, it was a once-in-a-lifetime visit.
“It was something different,” he said, in an interview with CBC News on Thursday.
“I’ve had politicians here on a regular basis, whether it was Conservatives, New Democrats, etcetera. But I’ve never had a Prime Minister here or Bryan Adams.”
“I’ve had other stars here too, but I haven’t had Bryan Adams. So it was something, something out of the ordinary,” he said. “How’s that?”
Nucci said he first heard about the visit several days ago… and while it was supposed to be kept a secret, word did seem to get out.
“It was supposed to have been hush hush. But every time you turned around, there was always somebody coming to me and saying, ‘Oh yeah, I hear Mark Carney and Bryan Adams are coming here on Thursday,” he said.
Those who weren’t in on the secret were shocked to see the pair sitting together at the popular cafe, Nucci said, adding that the Prime Minister stopped to chat and take photos with customers and staff.
Carney was in Thunder Bay on Thursday to announce funding for new Via Rail cars to be build in Canada. Adams was scheduled to play a show on Thursday night at the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium.
Carney and Adams were also spotted taking in the view, and taking a few selfies at Thunder Bay’s Terry Fox Monument on Thursday.
“This morning a couple of patriotic Canadians got together to honour another great Canadian – Terry Fox,” Thunder Bay-Rainy River MP Marcus Powlowski posted on Facebook.
Alongside several photos of the Prime Minister with the famous rocker, Powlowski also posted “For those who don’t recognize the other guy – it is Bryan Adams.”
