Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg

It is impossible to describe this wonderful museum and stunningly beautiful building that is the architectural and cultural masterpiece of Winnipeg. 

The museum is on eight levels. Each level is devoted to a different aspect of human rights around the world, historically and in the present. From a definition of human rights to exploration of indigenous people's perspective, from rights in Canada to human rights around the world, from examining the Holocaust to examining the definition and origin of the word "genocide", and a look at what that meant for five countries specifically. And there is much more. Art and expression, women's rights, a special exhibit of photography of blind and nearly blind people. An exploration of the rights of the disabled. More and more. They cover a lot of ground!

Level eight is a glass and steel tower which can either be climbed via a beautiful (and not scary) spiral staircase, or one can ride a spectacular elevator to get to the top. 

As you either ascend or descend between levels, you walk along ramps with lighted alabaster sides and the result is breathtaking. I will post a few photos and perhaps they will give some idea of what this museum is. 

Photo taken from the ballpark (we went to a game last night - Winnipeg Goldeyes vs Kansas City T-Bones)

This museum is worth a special trip to Winnipeg. 

A day in Winnipeg

We toured Winnipeg today, hitting a couple of notable areas and buildings. 

First was a stop to see St Boniface Cathedral, which we saw from the car the previous evening, looking for a restaurant.  

This cathedral has had six iterations, the first being built in the mid 1800's. It was a mission church originally which was focused on education. Today St Boniface University is right next door. The fifth large cathedral was built in 1908, and a catostrophic fire destroyed the interior in 1968. It apparently was decided to clean up and stabilize the old walls, and to build the new cathedral (a more contemporary building) right behind the ruins. The overall effect is really wonderful. I see in reviewing my photos that I failed to get a photo of the old cathedral next to the new. :-(  But I did get some good ones of the old hulk. 

The cathedral is right on the banks of the Red River of the North, and views across the river are of downtown Winnipeg. 

Next we toured the Winnipeg Legislature building, reminding us in some ways of the Minnesota Capitol building. We did the self guided tour. The building had very few people in it because the legislature is not in session. Here are some photos. 

We were very surprised when we entered the building. Here were the surprising things not often found in the US any more:  We walked up the original front steps and in through the large front doors, not a side entrance built for modern security. We were greeted by a smiling guard seated behind his desk, not by ropes and gates. We asked if we could see some of the building. We were assured that we could. No scanner, no airport type screening. There were tours on the hour, but we could go on a SELF GUIDED TOUR if we wanted. They just ask that you not go into any offices. We gave our names and we were given a visitor badge. That was it. We walked around all three levels and saw everything we wanted to see. It was so nice. 

We walked around downtown and drove out to Assiniboines Park and walked around there. A lovely day. 

I am watching Hillary Clinton accept the Democratic nomination for president. What a wonderful and exciting speech. I am so grateful to be able to call myself an American which has produced this exciting woman. Even though my previous comments indicate that it was wonderful to have the freedom to enter a public building without going through security here in Canada, I am thankful for our country's efforts to keep us safe, and for the economic development that has blessed so many in our country. I am so proud to be a woman in a country soon to elect a woman President, who is committed to working together to lift up everyone. Thank goodness we have a candidate who will work to, among many other things, maintain and develop good relations with our wonderful Canadian neighbors.

Winnipeg, Manitoba

We arrived in Winnipeg yesterday afternoon. Actually our campground is in Ile des Chenes, south of Winnipeg. After setting up we drove into the French area, St Boniface, and found a charming French restaurant called Resto Gare Bistro and Train Bar. We ate on the patio in back. Wonderful food. 

Today we drove up to Lake Winnipeg. From a geological point of view, this is a fascinating area. A HUGE portion of Manitoba and northern Minnesota were once covered by the ancient Lake Agassiz. This lake was formed by the melting glacial ice of the most recent ice age.  I read the Wikipedia article and it is good reading. In a nutshell: The lake had many outflows over a very long period of time, one of which was the ancient Minnesota River. The ice gained and receded several times, and the land changed in elevation and contour giving rise to other ancient lakes and rivers.  Lake Agassiz was at one time larger than all the Great Lakes put together. Finally the ice receded, the waters flowed out until what was left are the lakes of today which includes the very large Lake Winnipeg. We drove up to the main (maybe the only accessible) beach, Grand Beach, in the Provincial Park of that name, very popular in the summer. Here are some views. 

We did a 2 plus mile hike in an area that geologists have identified as an ancient beach. The hike is nowhere near the water today. It involves a little easy hiking up what was once the scarp, to a level area of what was once an island. Along the path were areas of deep sand, once a beach, and of course the level of the water changed over time, so there are multiple ancient beaches. Everything now is covered by forest.  I didn't take any photos but the hike was certainly interesting. 

We also walked a brand new boardwalk, constructed by the Brokenhead Ojibway Nation, in an area that is forest and fen. This 1 1/2 mile boardwalk takes one in an area of rare plants - pitcher plants, lady slippers, butterwort (purple), bladderwort (yellow), wild potentilla, cotton grass (they look like hoary Q-tips), Green Bog orchid, wild comfrey and coral root. I read about these, didn't actually identify or see many, but we did see plenty of the carnivorous pitcher plant. 

Detroit Lakes, MN

We are in Detroit Lakes, MN for 2 nights. What a lovely area. Toured Tamarac National Wildlife Refuge today. Saw several families of Trumpeter Swans and had some beautiful views. Pretty buggy, too! Deer flies and mosquitos.