Polar Bear Safari - October 8-9, 2024

Human Rights Museum - Winnipeg

We left SFO on October 8 on a 8:41 AM flight.  We had a layover in Vancouver, BC and then flew to Winnipeg, Manitoba.  We lost 2 hours as Manitoba is on central time.  We finally arrived at about 6:30 PM.

 

Our hotel was across the street from the terminal, so we walked over.  After checking in we met up with our friends Bob and Susan and had dinner with them and caught up on news.  They had arrived the previous day, so they had an opportunity to check out Winnipeg. 

 

About 9 the next morning, following their suggestion we headed via Uber to The Forks for breakfast.  Within the building there are a multitude of restaurants catering to all food tastes.  The buildings have been beautifully renovated and are situated on a site of the Red River (flowing up from the border of North Dakota with Minnesota) having a fascinating history dating back to 6000 years ago when Aboriginal groups used the site. For more on its history (The Forks history).

Breakfast at The Forks

The day was beautiful, and the temperatures reached 70 F. So, after breakfast, by this time late morning, we headed to the Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG) to visit their Inuit exhibit.  The gallery houses the largest public collection of contemporary Inuit art in the world.  You can take a virtual tour HERE.

 

The Inuit art in the museum was fascinating, featuring art works in many mediums.  I especially enjoyed the sculptures, examples of which can be seen below.

Shaman and Helping Spirts
Whale bone, ivory & stone

Haqalaqtuaqjuag, the Man Who Could do Nothing Wrong

Iqualullamiluq Waiting for her Baby to Surface
stone, antler, muskox horn, pigment, glue infill

Winnipeg is a lovely city and we have a day there at the end of the trip to also check out the human rights museum and the natural history museum.

As we had a late breakfast, we decided to skip lunch and took an Uber to a well-known ice cream shop across from the botanical gardens. After enjoying our ice cream, we strolled through the English Gardens and ended up in the sculpture garden, especially enjoying the works of Leo Mol, a famous Ukrainian-Canadian artist.

Late afternoon we had our third uber ride of the day and headed back to our hotel.  Our drivers were all immigrants and we enjoyed talking to them about their life in Manitoba, especially the days you are can only be outside for 5 minutes before your face freezes.

 

At 5:00 PM we were scheduled to be fitted with our Arctic gear.  Originally, a massive parka, heavy snow pants and boots rated to -40° F.  However, as temperatures were hovering around freezing at the lodges, we just received the heavy parkas.  For our trekking, we would use the rubber boots and rain pants available at the lodge.

 

At 6:00 PM, we gathered in a private room in hotel for an orientation provided by local Churchill Wild staff.  She showed a short slide show, went over the logistics for departure, issued name tags (in the shape of polar bears) and luggage tags for our flights in the morning.  We had a nice dinner and met the other participants in the tour.  Eight of us are from the US, 3 people from Australia and 4 people from the UK.