I had the luxury of a couple of hours at the Mennonite archives in Winnipeg. I was happy to find a copy of the 1888 census of the West Reserve where my great grandparents first came to Canada and settled in Manitoba. It was a real treat to have time in the archives and I could have easily stayed a lot longer. But I came away with some lovely treasures to read and enjoy.
After that we turned the RV east to Kenora and a little further south to Rushing River provincial campground. The landscape changed to the Canadian Shield with massive rocks taking up large portions of the campsites which were very cleverly arranged around the rocks.
Today was Bronwyn’s last day with us, and we could tell she was looking forward to going home as she packed up. She was excited to have found something special to take home for each person in her family.
We visited the human rights museum and especially enjoyed the Nelson Mandela display, as well as the Jewish/Canadian history.
We strolled around the forks, and along the river.
And then it was time to be off to the airport. Bronwyn was flying as an “unaccompanied minor” which meant one of us could go with her to the gate and wait a few minutes after the plane left to be sure they were on their way. But alas the plane only pulled back from the gate … then it came back to the gate because the air conditioning wasn’t working. Bronwyn handled the hiccup with ease and after a couple of hours and a gate change she was off and indeed made it home!
First stop today was the Royal Canadian Mint. Although they were not in production mode, we still had a very informative tour. The flags outside represent the many other countries that Canada mints coins (circulation or specialty) for.
Phyllis and George Gillespie invited us to join them for the afternoon. They’ve lived in the Beasuejour area for many years and are avid outdoors enthusiasts. They took us to Grand Beach where we enjoyed a walk on the beach and fun on the dunes, massive ice cream cones and the brightest blue-green algae we’ve ever seen. It was overcast and a little cool (but not for us Albertans!) So it wasn’t at all crowded.
Supper and a lovely visit and games back at their house.
We joined the people at Steinbach Mennonite Brethren church on Sunday morning for church. Afterwards we went to the Mennonite Heritage Village for lunch; pierogies, farmer sausage, and more.
The village is set up in the style that the Mennonites used in Russia, with the homes, stores, school and other services in the central village withth farm land laid out in long strips behind each of the homes. We saw a couple of house-barns that were fashioned after those found in Holland and Russia. The displays included a section of the Berlin Wall that represents yet another time when Mennonites fled for fear of persecution.
On the drive back to Winnipeg we stopped to take pics of fields of sunflowers and the longitudinal centre of Canada-a fact we didn’t know.
8th we drove from Moosomin to Brandon, stopped for lunch and groceries then continued north to Riding Mountain National park. The landscape changed as we drove north, rolling hills and lots of bush, with fields of grain along the way.
A quick drive into Clear Lake Town to get a feel for the place. It’s a nice little beach front town and should be fun to enjoy tomorrow.
9th
Pancake breakfast-thanks Tac! What a beautiful day for an outdoor day! We dropped into Clear Lake and enjoyed some beach time. Too bad the lake has swimmer’s itch right now so we just sat back and enjoyed the sunshine. Bronwyn got to have her first beavertail-cinnamon and sugar. She and I played frisbee and got up to 16 tosses without a miss!
Back at the campground we headed to the pool and cooled off with a dip and some fun in the water.
We took a sunset cruise on Clear Lake. At first we thought the clouds might block the sun, but after a while it gave us some fantastic photos!
Aug 13 – zoo and more
What a great day to head to the zoo: not too hot not too cool just right! So many animals were out for us to see and the polar bears wrestling above us in the glass tunnel were the highlight!!
Finding the statue of Lieutenant Harry Colebourn and Winnie the bear was a bit of an “amazing race” challenge but we found it for Oliver.
Manitoba Legislature
And of course we had to visit the legislature here in Winnipeg. We learned how the two massive bison sculptures at the base of the stairs had to be slid in on blocks of ice and slid in over the new marble because the roof was completed and closed in (oops)!
Gillespie’s invited Bronwyn to see the Rogers and Hammerstein production of Cinderella at the Rainbow Stage. What a treat!!
While she was enjoying the show, we enjoyed a fabulous dinner and visit with Dave and Kristen Harris.
Late night desert with Gillespie’s to hear all about the musical and home by midnight.
We checked out of our accommodation, Bin There, this morning. What a unique and well equipped place. Our hosts were very friendly and before we left we got a tour of one of the bins that has been converted to a cabin.
What a difference a few hundred kms makes. The barley and peas/lentils are turning quite yellow and some fields have already been desiccated. We saw one field that has been swathed already. It’s very dry here, some sloughs are dried up.
We had a great tour of the SK legislature building today. We learned that it’s similar in shape and size to the Louvre in Paris. Usually tours don’t allow visitors to enter the chamber, but because one of the people on the tour was in a wheelchair we were able to stand in the chamber! The grounds are stunning, situated on Wascana Lake.
Next stop was the RCMP heritage museum and training depot. It’s a very well laid out museum with a wide variety of artifacts and stories, including the story of the Mad Trapper. Lucky for us, the cadets were holding a sunset ceremony so we stayed into the evening to enjoy the the marching pipes, band and cadets. The cadets formations are similar to the ones done by the musical ride. The police dogs and handlers from Innisfail, AB were also there and did some demonstrations of their training routines.
We met Phebe & Les and kids in Moose Jaw for lunch. We decided to use this opportunity to celebrate all our birthdays (usually we do that a in June, but it didn’t work out this year). So, adding up all our ages we celebrated our combined 252nd birthday! Much to our surprise Oliver ordered and finished steak and eggs!
The Tunnels of Moose Jaw were next. what a great tour of the underground laundry and deplorable conditions the early Chinese immigrants faced.
Supper was with my cousin Marina and Ron. It was so nice to have faspa (mennonite Sunday meal of easy cold food) mmmm and a great visit with them in their beautiful back yard!
Myrna filled out bellies with yummy green banana/plantain pancakes, then we were off.
Lunch today was with Klassen relatives in Osler, SK. What a treat to visit with them. Each time we visit we always seem to learn something new about our roots. Conversation today included stories of my Mennonite grandparents dancing. Dancing??!! Mennonites??!! Who knew? We also discussed how folks on the Aberdeen side of the river made “meat perishke”, or “meat cookies”, whereas folks on the other side of the river (yan see) we’re familiar with fruit perishke. And of course served with cabbage-borscht. MMM.
Home is in the rear view mirror now. We’re grateful for nice weather to start the trip. The barley fields are at my favorite stage-the the wind sends ripples across them.
First stop is at “the farm”. What better place to stop and remember that this is where our inspiration came from. Lyndon’s parents, Barb and Vern, make numerous trips across Canada. Most memorable for me was when I sent along a little stuffed puppy and asked Barb to take pictures of it as they made their way across the country. She made an album for us, with her handwriting and comments about the places they visited along the way. It’s such a treasure!!
Cross-Canada with the MAHARG's 