I have to say, from what people had told us (including Winnipeggers), we didn't have very high hopes of having fun in Winnipeg. Well, our first pleasant surprise was the amazing Airbnb, which had a heated pool and patio and everything! Our host was amazing (and was an excellent cook), we made a new friend while we were there, and we even ended up extending our stay to make the most of the city. 😄
DAY 1 (June 2nd)
So, after spending the night in a real bed, we were ready to start our day of exploring the city. Our first stop was the Assiniboine Park Zoo, which reminded us quite a lot of the Berlin Zoo in the way it was arranged. We were apparently some of the lucky few to see the polar bears and arctic fox that day, and we were very surprised at the great number of gophers running around! That, and a lot of wild rabbit just hopping everywhere, peacocks strutting their stuff and families of Canada geese strolling around. This is one of the perks of Winnipeg: even in the middle of the city, there's wildlife. We saw deer just crossing the street (at the pedestrian crossing, mind you, these folks are civilized) and strolling in the backyard of our Airbnb, too.
Joel was very happy to see a wolf up close like this, and we also got to see the very timid burrowing owls! Funny thing is, we got a better look at them here than even in the special enclosure at FortWhyte Alive (coming up in the text!)... There was also a place to pet stingrays, but since we'd done that in Quebec City before leaving AND because there were so many kids around, we just went in for a quick look.
Our second stop for the day was FortWhyte Alive, where there were a few hiking trails, a herd of plains bison, a small aquarium, and an exhibit where you can touch taxidermy specimens. We spent quite a lot of time visiting the park, so we got to see the bison, went up a treehouse, spotted a few turtles out in the wild, and got swarmed by pollen. On the last picture of this block, where it looks like there's snow on the ground, yeah, that's actually pollen. 😬
We also wanted to go visit the Trappist Monastery, but it was closed to the public since there was some kind of Shakespeare performance going on, so we could only take a picture from the parking lot. Since it was around dinnertime, we decided to do a quick stop at Stone Angel Brewing Co. for a little flight of beer (their peanut butter stout was divine!), and then we drove to the Forks to get something to eat and visit. The Original Pancake House caught our eye... and boy, we were not disappointed. We had to take a breather or two to finish our plates! 😋 After a quick walk around the market, we finally saw the real deal: the Forks itself. Named after the Y shape in the river here ("La Fourche" in French), it is believed to have some sort of special power, and if you stand in the middle on specific dates, you will see specific stars through the rings on each pole around! It was really awe-inspiring, and because we were there during the Pride festival, it was very lively, too. 🏳️🌈
And since we were not too far from the Saint Boniface Cathedral, we decided we still had a few calories to spend and walked to the other side of the bridge. There we also got to see Louis Riel's tombstone (he was a Métis who helped found the province of Manitoba), as well as the cathedral itself. The view from this side of the river was great, too! We then walked back to the car, and that was it for the day. Phew! 😪
Day 2
We woke up to a total downpour, and so we decided it was a perfect day to sleep in. Fortunately, just in time for lunch, the sky cleared up and we were on our way to Chinatown, where we were told we would find the best dumplings ever. Well, it was certainly an experience if nothing else! We went to Kum Koon Garden, an authentic Chinese restaurant, and boy, the cultural shock was there. We were not even seated that a lady pushing a cart of food was barking the choices at us, and I think we said yes just to buy a minute to remove our raincoats... Everytime we said yes to something, they'd scratch a mark on our "tab", and after not even 5 minutes, the table was full of food! We finally got to say no to stuff, and started enjoying the meal. The dim sum were really excellent, and we also ate perogies and a lot of stuff we had no idea what it was. The decor was very elegant (it kinda clashed with the rest), but we had finished lunch in about 30 minutes so no time to enjoy, really. Ah well, as I said, it was an experience! And nobody got sick. 😉
We then decided to pay the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba a visit. We didn't have a reservation, but we learned you don't need one. Contrary to the Parliament in Quebec City, you can just walk in there (no bag check, nothing!) and walk around the place. It was really impressive! In front of the building is a statue of Queen Victoria, and inside, guarding the staircase, are two large bison. Since we were there on a weekday, we even got to attend a session! Yes, that part required us to go through a metal detector and all, but I don't think I've ever seen security guards so chill about their job. We stayed a while, then headed back to the Airbnb where it was taco night! We also went for a swim in the pool that evening. And that was it for the day!
Day 3
Our last full day in Winnipeg was dedicated to museums! The first one we went to was the Winnipeg Police Museum, and we had a blast! We were the only ones there (sounds familiar by now eh?) and the two policemen there were so nice. We had a few questions about the artifacts, and they even showed us how they use "come-alongs" (worth the Google search). We got to sit in a sidecar, wear a bison coat, and see an old police anti-mine shield. All this for free! We did leave a donation because it was so cool. 😊
On our way to the next museum was the library, in front of which is a fountain called "emptyful", which was spewing mist everywhere, but was very relaxing. Must be beautiful at night, because it has lights right under over the tiny curtain of water running down the bottom of the container. We also walked all the way back to the Forks to get a picture of Rhino with the Winnipeg sign (first picture in this post), and to go see Union Station, where we had lunch. The portions were enormous, and that chili was so good, too!
Our final stop of the day was at the Manitoba Museum, and boy was it a big stop! It's a really complete museum, so we saw everything from a recreated old town to a ship to dinosaur fossils to First Nation artifacts. In the pictures below you can see what an old pharmacy looked like in Winnipeg at the time of the strike in 1919, an exact replica of a ship called the Nonsuch that was built in England in 1970, then sailed across the Atlantic and given to the museum, and a bison hunting scene.
And then there was also another Body Worlds exhibition... about animals! Animals Inside Out was both fascinating and creepy. I mean, some of the stuff was seriously nightmare-inducing. But we also learned a good deal!
Aaaand that was the last day visiting in Winnipeg. We made a new friend from Mexico/Nebraska over dinner at our Airbnb, and ended up going to the liquor store for a little sparkling wine to celebrate our new friendship! After an exchange of gifts, we were off to bed and, as all of us were leaving the next morning, bid farewell to each other. With the promise, of course, to see each other again during our trip! Day 4 had 2 planned stops en route to our next big destination, so we got going pretty early. Stay tuned, folks! 💜
TL;DR: Winnipeg was way more fun than we thought it would be! On day 1, we visited the Assiniboine Park Zoo, went hiking at FortWhyte Alive, visited the Forks, then walked over to Saint Boniface Cathedral. Day 2 was when we had an authentic (and kinda traumatizing) Chinese cuisine experience at Kum Koon Garden, then paid the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba a visit. Day 3 was museum day, so we visited the Winnipeg Police Museum (a must-see), then spent the afternoon at the Manitoba Museum, where we learned a lot about history in general and got to see the fascinating/creepy Animals Inside Out.
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