Winnipeg, Manitoba, the great polar bear migration adventure begins....

 

Well…. after many years of wanting to see the migration of the polar bears in the Canadian north, another bucket list item will be erased. The journey has started….  yesterday, Ann, Cathy and I flew to Winnipeg a day early to tour Winnipeg before we depart tomorrow for Churchill, Manitoba to see the polar bear migration. Today, was relatively mild day in Winnipeg...50F but winter is very much in the air...a very dreary day! We were dropped at the Manitoba Legislative Building, a Grand neoclassical building, built to emulate Solomon’s Temple with it’s the statue of the Greek God Hermes (nicknamed the Golden Boy) that stands atop the building. Next, we meandered our way to the Fort Gary Hotel one of Canada’s grand railway hotels which is one block from the railway's impressive Union Station. Union Station with its domed central rotunda is flanked by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights (CMHR). The CMHR is a glass cloud and stone façade towering over the Winnipeg skyline. Situated at the foot of the museum is the striking Esplanade Riel pedestrian foot bridge spanning the Red River. We traversed the bridge to enter St. Boniface, this neighborhood is home to one of Manitoba’s largest francophone communities and is the heart of the region’s French culture. We visited St. Boniface Basilica and the grave of Louis Riel, the Métis leader who was responsible for Manitoba’s creation as a province. We strolled along Provencher Boulevard to see the St. Boniface City Hall and made our way to Fort Gibraltar and the Bourgeois House built in 1809 as headquarters of the North West Company.  The fort was the source of many skirmishes between the competing traders who merged in 1821 to become the iconic Hudson Bay Company. After a return crossing of the Red River, we entered the Forks National Historic Site, located near the junction of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers for a rest, drinks and shopping in the Forks Market and Common. Luckily, the rain held off for most of the day and we were able to see as much as possible. We grabbed a cab back to the hotel and drove through the West End area and were able to see some of the area murals. Great day in Winnipeg...resting up for our very early morning flight to Churchill.