7 June - In Winnipeg - Day 34 of TCE

  

Winnipeg, the capital of Manitoba Province, does not have a posh look. But it is steeped in history. Even its joining the Confederation, its naming and the rights of Aboriginal people are all unique in the history of Canada. In aboriginal Cree language the word Winnipeg means muddy water. The city is centred around the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers, which both look muddy! Known as the Gateway to the West, Winnipeg is a transportation hub that serves a diverse economy. The city is home to more than 200,000 mature elm trees making is the 'largest urban elm forest' in the world. The Dutch Elm disease that had taken a large toll on the trees in the recent past has now been contained.

The bright weather prompted me to take the outdoor activities first. Therefore, my first stop for the day was the highly recommended Zoo. The Assiniboine Zoo is an interactive classroom experience, spread over hectares of verdant parks, a short drive from downtown Winnipeg. I was happy to be regarded as a senior adult with a concession for the entrance ticket. Everywhere else the senior concession kicks in only after the age of 65. A volunteer at the gateway to the zoo suggested that I take the stingray tank first because it was quiet and less crowded. She said that a large number of school kids are expected shortly and then the place would get crowded and noisy. I followed her directions and thoroughly enjoyed the visit.

On the way to the stingray tank were a set of wild horses native to Mongolia and Central Asia. The Przewalski’s horse is the last surviving ancestor to the domestic horse. They are an endangered species. Further there were large varieties of deer and goats. The Pronghorn is the second fastest mammal on earth after the cheetah. The Alpine Ibex is a majestic creature with stately horns. An enclosure had a large number of Red Kangaroos and another with Emus, both native to Australia. The many peacocks with fine coloured feathers were in large numbers in the zoo. They seemed to be the watchdogs for all animals in their enclosure, alerting them of approaching humans.

The most popular current attraction is feeding and petting Stingrays in a tank. At the entrance to the enclosure a volunteer explains how the stingrays have to be approached and tells all visitors to wash their hands before putting them into the tank. The stingrays are deadly and hence, I asked one of the volunteers how it is possible to pet the fish without being stung. She told me that the area from where the sting is emitted have been nipped to make the experience happen. Children absolutely love this enclosure. The tank is not very clean because it contains the leftovers of the feed such as capelin and shrimp, and the poop of the fish. It gives off a particular kind of smell, which I could stand for just a little while.

The Journey to Churchill is a special Arctic section where one can see Polar bears, muskoxen, Arctic wolves, foxes and the like. Viewing polar bears was a lovely experience. One associates snow with a polar bear and I was under the impression that it survives only in that environment. Here it was in the sweltering heat of 37 degrees Celsius in Winnipeg. A large number of interaction centres surround the enclosure where these animals are the cynosure of adults and kids. There is another enclosure where a set of five wolves were being fed by their keeper, who provided an introduction to the pack, mentioning each by name and their position in the pack hierarchy. He said that the pack was a celebrity pack having acted in movies and now retired to stay there the rest of their lives. The wolves apparently need 10 kgs of meat every fortnight. The more I looked at them the more they looked similar to the Alsatian breed of dogs. And, so did the Arctic and brown foxes who looked so similar to Pomeranian dogs. The Zoo is home to over 200 species of animals from all over the globe. I also visited the enclosure for gibbons as the volunteer at the entrance had told me that one of the gibbons had had a baby recently and that may be worth a visit. I did see the mother swinging with her small child clinging to her stomach, but that was just a fleeting few seconds. The volunteers there looked perplexed as to where she had disappeared.

When the two hour zoo visit was over I was game for an indoor visit. The Winnipeg Mint was my next destination. Since it was lunch time I had to wait for an hour for the next tour with a guide. I spent the time going around the large gift shop and exhibition. The gift shop is a jaw dropping and mouth-watering experience at the same time, not knowing which happens when. It has the most incredible collectibles and special collections on sale. It was indeed fascinating to see coloured coins and I came to know the secret of it during the tour. The exhibition centre has a bar of gold with the highest purity ever produced, the five nine purity. One could lift the bar, of course in the presence of a security guard. Another box had similar slabs of aluminium, gold, silver and steel which could be lifted using a handle. It does not require supernormal intelligence to know which weighs the most.

The tour began at 1 pm and the guide was the most personable Jeremy. He took the visitors on a fabulous tour of the Mint and gave an overview into the making of coins, little vignettes such as distribution of 30 million coloured poppy coins through Tim Hortons’ outlets across the country, and the role of the Mint, which is today the second largest in the world after the Royal Mint of Britain. This Mint is the only one that has the technology to Pad Print on coins, which gives them lasting colours. The Winnipeg Mint was established in 1976 to assist the Ottawa Mint. Today the latter produces collectibles at 8000 coins per day while the former produces 15 million pieces a day for 79 countries in the world, including India. The flags of 79 customer countries are flown in the Mint premise. Jeremy told us how the US flag came to be flown in the Mint premise despite a law that mandates every US coin to be struck on US soil. In 1999, when the US mints were full to capacity and order the Winnipeg Mint made blanks for the US government and thus, got around the law.

A classic story Jeremy told the tour group was about the production of the 20 feet tall gold coin of five nine purity in 2017 to celebrate 150^th anniversary of the confederation. Presently, it is on permanent display in the ROM in Toronto. Demand for the coin arose from private collectors around the world and four more were made and sold for 7.5 million dollar each. Of them one was stolen in Germany from a museum and has not yet been traced. It was indeed astonishing to note how a mere production process has been turned into an educative tour and a money spinner. Jeremy told us that the company has to be competitive in its production costs so as to continue production. All international contracts come to it through a competitive bidding process. The Min has just 375 staff, of who 300 are directly engaged on the factory floor.

  

The Forks Market is an iconic meeting place in Winnipeg, as it has been for the past 6000 years. Old warehouses that helped trade over the past centuries now serve as a magnet to interface local farmers and artisans with customers from across the globe. I sauntered into a bakery and fished out the most delectable hot buns to snack on. I wish I had organic preserves to go with it. The products of local artisans that were on display in many stores made me salivate but I held my wallet tight so as not to lose control of it on those magnificent and unique products.

The imposing 11 storey Canadian Museum of Human Rights is just a stone's throw away. The modern Provencher Bridge links downtown Winnipeg to St Boniface and is the only one in the world to have a restaurant on it. The Saint Boniface Cathedral is an early 19^th century church with an imposing façade. Unfortunately, the church was neither open to worship nor visit. Louis Riel, the firebrand Metis leader known in modern times as the Father of Manitoba, who was hanged in 1885, is buried in the cemetery of the Cathedral.

The temperature in the city touched 37 degrees Celsius in the afternoon making it almost impossible to be outdoors. Already scalded and 'torched', I had to return to the relative cool of the homestay earlier than I had intended. I was dead beat from the outdoor activity in that heat. I had not anticipated the change from 10 degrees Celsius in Thunder Bay to the scorching heat of Winnipeg. Most importantly, the weather had held. The evening was preserved for a couple of pegs of Spiced Rum and Coke, with dinner at the nearby outlet of Subway.