We're just home from four days in Winnipeg: two days of walking bookended by two days of driving.
I enjoyed the whole experience. Winnipeg is a large city but not so large as to be daunting. As we would say in the south, Winnipeg is not "all eat up with" its own importance. It was like visiting a U.S. city that's larger than Des Moines (but with that prairie feel) but smaller than Minneapolis/St. Paul (but with that sense of nearness of trees).
It has a functional downtown, although the buildings have their fair share of empty storefronts. I also saw few amenities for people who live and work downtown. For example, I didn't see a regular grocery store in the heart of downtown, as you would find in other cities, though some markets had some fruit and packaged stuff.
Skywalks and tunnels make it possible to get around in inclement weather, though they're set up less for convenience (they meander) and more as dowtown revitalization projects. The shops ranged from your basic mall stores to collections of inexpensive imports and the ubiquitous (in Canada ) A Buck or Two dollar-amas. We didn't investigate the bus system, but the city would need a really good bus system to make life navigable without a car.
However, for geeks, it's a pretty fun place. It has a surprisingly large museum and planetarium (and two children's museums) and an Imax theatre. If you're into walking to see what's around, both sides of the Red River have interesting buildings. We happened into a tour of the St. Boniface cathedral, which burned and was rebuilt 40 years ago. Interesting story and interesting choices by the architect.
The Forks is an indoor/outdoor market/waterfront area (and a natural, government-protected area) that is the envy of (and possibly the model for) the new Thunder Bay waterfront development. Throughout Saturday, people (tourists, locals) actually showed up there to hang around. The photo above is from a special display of mining equipment (it was Manitoba Mining Week or some such) there.
Those with sincere interests in things like ballet, opera, concerts/shows, comedy, music festivals, cultural and ethnic displays, history, or food can find entertainment and stimulation.
But one of the strangest parts of the experience, for me, was driving somewhere that wasn't into the U.S. No border crossing and passports. No translating currency; no need for a dual-wallet system. Just a trip--not even to visit family. Just for relaxation. A getaway. A vacation. In the same country where I already live. Huh.
