Rolling on the Tundra: A Polar Bear Adventure

Oh, Canada! I was up very early this morning after a late night of packing, and I traveled to Canada—leaving Memphis, flying to Minneapolis, and then continuing on to Winnipeg, Canada. After settling into the hotel, I took a taxi to “La Fourche” – “The Forks.” The forks of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers merge near downtown Winnipeg, and it is the site of many historical events related to the Canadian West. Aboriginal peoples, settlers, merchants, fur traders, railway and river boat workers…and may others were drawn to this area over the past hundreds of years.

Today “The Forks” is a park and riverside promenade with playgrounds, shopping, restaurants, a Children’s Museum, and much more. It is a gathering place for the people of Winnipeg. I shopped, ate lunch, and walked all around this area, and when I looked across the river, a beautiful cathedral could be seen in the distance. As has happened in so many cities around the world, the cathedral’s beauty “called” me, and I wanted deperately to go and see it. So, I started my “hike” along the river and across the “Esplanade Riel” to see the Cathedral of Saint Boniface.

Upon arriving, I saw amazing statues, a very old cemetery with beautiful grave markers, and the front facade of what “used to be” the cathedral. Sadly, the cathedral had burned in 1968…and not for the first time. The cathedral was originally built in 1860, and what remains today is the stone framework of the cathedral. There is now a newer cathedral directly behind the facade of the first one. The visit to St. Boniface was an unexpected journey that touched my soul with its history and quiet beauty.

So, after a great afternoon of walking in the sunny, crisp Winnipeg weather, shopping in the Market Place, and eating “world famous” fish and chips at Fergie’s, I took a taxi back to the airport hotel. It is time to rest and prepare for my flight to Churchill, the “Polar Bear Capital of the World” tomorrow. There were many other tourists around me today, both on the plane and in the hotel, who were chatting about their upcoming trip to Churchill, and I could tell that it is very exciting for everyone as the dream of being on the tundra and seeing the polar bears in their natural environment comes closer to being a reality. Here we go! “Polar Bear, Polar Bear – What Do You Hear?” I think they will soon be hearing me laughing with amazement and delight!  ;-)