Winnipeg Day 1

After an early morning pitch black start, a flight to Minneapolis and a second flight to Winnipeg, we met up with some people in our group and a Natural Habitat staff member to head off to the Fort Gary Hotel in Winnipeg. After checking in and freshening up, we walked through the eerily empty train station, which has a lovely domed ceiling to The Forks. This is a shopping area with park areas and trails at the junction of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, which was an important trading area and a gathering spot for the Native Americans. All of the buildings were originally used by the rail yard, that was originally at this site. We had lunch at a place similar to Reading Terminal Market and walked around the trails and along the river. We saw Canadian geese, which look amazingly similar to those in our yard. Across the river in the French Quarter, we explored the ruins of St. Boniface Cathedral, which was destroyed by fire. Behind the ruins, a much more contemporary church was built. By about five in the afternoon, it was getting dark, so we returned to the hotel. We had a casual dinner at a sports bar called the Keg and then turned in early after our travel day. Hopefully, the sunshine and relatively mild weather will stay with us throughout the trip. Tomorrow, we have a tour through Winnipeg.

Today’s trivia: In Winnipeg, we are about 60 miles from the U.S. border above Minnesota and North Dakota. More than 90% of the Canadian population lives within 100 miles of the U.S. border.

Photos:

St Boniface Cathedral

Red River

Canadian Geese (in Canada...get it?)