Up before sunrise, we all scurried about to have breakfast at the hotel before boarding our bus for a guided tour of Winnipeg at 7:45 a.m. Our lively and enthusiastic guide was terrific as she pointed out various bits of information on our way to our first destination. She would describe various buildings and architecture, landmarks and so on. Our first stop was a spectacular sculpture garden! Leo Mol, who emigrated from Europe, became a famous artist and sculptor in Winnipeg. He then donated all of his work to the city with the provision they make it accessible to the public free of charge. 
We were lucky enough while we strolled along to view flowers that had not yet succumbed to the cold weather. We were fortunate to have started our tour here with some sunshine as it later turned colder and started to rain.
We were lucky enough while we strolled along to view flowers that had not yet succumbed to the cold weather. We were fortunate to have started our tour here with some sunshine as it later turned colder and started to rain.
Next, we viewed the Dalnavert Museum. The museum was a historical home which was build for the First Prime Minster. It showed very accurate representation of the lifestyle of his family during this time period. It showed servants quarters, living areas of the home, and talked about the daily routines of the household.
The Legislative Building was next. The locals simply refer to it as the “Ledg”. A lot of thought went into the creation of this building. The main entrance to the building was grand, with figures of livestock and farming representing the city’s agriculture. As we entered, our guide pointed out the carved head of Athena above the doorway. It was said to have been placed there in order to give good wisdom to the lawmakers as they pass through. Also, the head of Medusa would be above the entrance to the main floor, where they would pass the laws, to take away all evil thoughts. She pointed out the walls of the building. The stones used were all mined nearby, and some of which contained actual fossils.
We then went to the St Boniface Museum where we learned about Louis Real, the founding father of Winnipeg and the Red River Valley. We were shown history of how this township was built, native peoples, and religious influence during this era. The Nuns and Bishop had a long hard struggle to make it here as the journey itself was fraught with inhospitable landscape and harsh weather. Flooding is as much apparent now as it was back then.
This led to our next tour, the St Bonifice Cathedral. This small building started out as a humble little church, soon to be replaced by larger sanctuary. This larger church ended up burning down, and was eventually rebuilt into this magnificent Cathedral. It was truly spectacular in size. It was the largest Cathedral in Canada when in 1968 a terrible fire consumed most of the building. The few remaining parts of the building still left intact were the enormous archway in the back, and the entrance which were made of stone. The fire was so intense that it even charred some of the head stones in the cemetery near by.
We had run a bit behind schedule at this point, so our tour of the French Quarter was a brief drive through to the next destination….LUNCH and shopping! The area known as the Forks, named for the place where both of the surrounding rivers meet, had a quaint little food court with various types of food to please us all.
We boarded the bus again for a tour of the Manitoba Museum. AMAZING! The museum is the perfect blend of cultural and natural history. As a matter of fact, the entire museum was built around one exhibit in particular, a ship called the Nonsuch. The actual ship was used for transportation as well as fur trading. Other exhibits included life size scenes of farming, wildlife, and settlements of native and immigrant people. And, of course, the Polar Bear. The bear in this exhibit was thought to represent a medium size bear! An outstanding place, could have stayed there for hours. However, the museum itself was closing for the day.
On the way back to our hotel, our guide pointed out that the city of Winnipeg is often used to double for other cities in the movies. This is due to the highest concentration of old style buildings (for example brownstones) in the area. It was substituted for Chicago in the film Save the Last Dance starring Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez.
After our brief (but much needed) stop back at the hotel we, again (sigh), boarded the bus for a trip into town to attend a dinner theater. Celebrations Dinner Theater pulled out all the stops. Beginning with their servers (who were in character themselves), to the over the top performers, to the show itself provided fantastic entertainment. The Las Vegas style comedy show included dancing girls, the Copa Casino, gambling, gangsters and, of course, Frank and Dino (patterned after Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra). The performers would meander through the audience, striking up conversations at various tables throughout the night. The show was very big on audience participation. Even two members of our group were up on stage doing their best to “audition” as showgirls. The blog writer herself and Shelly were the two lucky ladies who got up on stage. By using feather boas and their best dance moves to set themselves apart from the other dancers, they tirelessly attempted to entertain the audience in the hopes of making the cut! Of course, the standard “we’ll be in touch” response followed. (sigh) I guess I will have to stick to writing!
Our return to the hotel put us in around 10:30/ 11:00 p.m. After a long and very busy day, our rooms and those soft fluffy beds and pillows were like HEAVEN!
See all photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/mimpolarbears/PolarBearCaravan#
The Legislative Building was next. The locals simply refer to it as the “Ledg”. A lot of thought went into the creation of this building. The main entrance to the building was grand, with figures of livestock and farming representing the city’s agriculture. As we entered, our guide pointed out the carved head of Athena above the doorway. It was said to have been placed there in order to give good wisdom to the lawmakers as they pass through. Also, the head of Medusa would be above the entrance to the main floor, where they would pass the laws, to take away all evil thoughts. She pointed out the walls of the building. The stones used were all mined nearby, and some of which contained actual fossils.
We then went to the St Boniface Museum where we learned about Louis Real, the founding father of Winnipeg and the Red River Valley. We were shown history of how this township was built, native peoples, and religious influence during this era. The Nuns and Bishop had a long hard struggle to make it here as the journey itself was fraught with inhospitable landscape and harsh weather. Flooding is as much apparent now as it was back then.
This led to our next tour, the St Bonifice Cathedral. This small building started out as a humble little church, soon to be replaced by larger sanctuary. This larger church ended up burning down, and was eventually rebuilt into this magnificent Cathedral. It was truly spectacular in size. It was the largest Cathedral in Canada when in 1968 a terrible fire consumed most of the building. The few remaining parts of the building still left intact were the enormous archway in the back, and the entrance which were made of stone. The fire was so intense that it even charred some of the head stones in the cemetery near by.
We had run a bit behind schedule at this point, so our tour of the French Quarter was a brief drive through to the next destination….LUNCH and shopping! The area known as the Forks, named for the place where both of the surrounding rivers meet, had a quaint little food court with various types of food to please us all.
We boarded the bus again for a tour of the Manitoba Museum. AMAZING! The museum is the perfect blend of cultural and natural history. As a matter of fact, the entire museum was built around one exhibit in particular, a ship called the Nonsuch. The actual ship was used for transportation as well as fur trading. Other exhibits included life size scenes of farming, wildlife, and settlements of native and immigrant people. And, of course, the Polar Bear. The bear in this exhibit was thought to represent a medium size bear! An outstanding place, could have stayed there for hours. However, the museum itself was closing for the day.
On the way back to our hotel, our guide pointed out that the city of Winnipeg is often used to double for other cities in the movies. This is due to the highest concentration of old style buildings (for example brownstones) in the area. It was substituted for Chicago in the film Save the Last Dance starring Richard Gere and Jennifer Lopez.
After our brief (but much needed) stop back at the hotel we, again (sigh), boarded the bus for a trip into town to attend a dinner theater. Celebrations Dinner Theater pulled out all the stops. Beginning with their servers (who were in character themselves), to the over the top performers, to the show itself provided fantastic entertainment. The Las Vegas style comedy show included dancing girls, the Copa Casino, gambling, gangsters and, of course, Frank and Dino (patterned after Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra). The performers would meander through the audience, striking up conversations at various tables throughout the night. The show was very big on audience participation. Even two members of our group were up on stage doing their best to “audition” as showgirls. The blog writer herself and Shelly were the two lucky ladies who got up on stage. By using feather boas and their best dance moves to set themselves apart from the other dancers, they tirelessly attempted to entertain the audience in the hopes of making the cut! Of course, the standard “we’ll be in touch” response followed. (sigh) I guess I will have to stick to writing!
Our return to the hotel put us in around 10:30/ 11:00 p.m. After a long and very busy day, our rooms and those soft fluffy beds and pillows were like HEAVEN!
See all photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/mimpolarbears/PolarBearCaravan#
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