Cannibis vaping and smoking!! Everywhere!! We were at the MainStage beside the sound booth. my…read morechest is like someone is standing on it, my eyes sting and I have a headache like I've never had before. And there children breathing in this stuff! I definitely cannot attend again unless there are some enforced rules about smoking.

Geez. What a special experience. I just got back from my first Winnipeg Folk Festival and I guess…read moreI'll be a lifer from from now on, if I'm lucky. It's hard to describe and it is a bit like being absorbed into a secret cult, except it's only secret because it's in the woods in Manitoba, and it's not a cult it's just a magic weekend at a campground full of friendly, diverse families loving music. There are no corporate sponsors or brands, all the food is local, and all the presenters and organizers seem wildly earnest. There are workshops all day where the musicians in the fest are brought together to jam and tell stories around different themes (my favourite.) And then big shows at the main stage each night with thousands of people sitting and listening carefully, and thousands more dancing politely on the side to not block the view. The other thing you should know is that there is the festival proper, which consists of a main stage and about 6 other smaller stages set throughout the woods around the Birds Hill Provincial park, easy walking distances between them, to which you can purchase a day or full weekend pass and see everyone from Feist and the Shins to Bruce Cockburn and Daniel Lanois (and that was all just this past weekend, plus hundreds more.) There are taverns with local beer on tap and all kinds of food vendors from local Winnipeg restaurants. And then outside of the festival grounds there are the festival camping grounds, and this is almost like another festival entirely. Tent cities tucked between trees and stretching across fields, every imaginable kind of hippy van and RV, homemade teepees and Buckminster Fuller geodesic domes and yurts, a whole popup music venue and bar in a tent slinging whiskey and the tent walls shaking till the early morning hours with insane bands and crowds pushed up against them signing along. There is an endless mushroom-fueled drum circle on Pope's Hill watching for Aurora Borealis, and every fifteen steps there is another campfire, with a group of new friends of all ages, curled around a couple guitars, ukes, banjos, mandos, a standup bass, even a full drum kit at one campsite, drawing you in to singalong as you pass by. There is a dress up tent, and a trading post, and the most delicious pizza oven on wheels... and so much more. I'm super thankful to have been indoctrinated into this weird special extended loving love-in. Much love and gratitude to the organizers and the endless streams of smiling volunteers. Can't wait to go back.

The WAG was on my list to visit for years. I finally made it happen by driving the long drive from…read morethe US. Was it worth it? Oh, yeah! I geek out on Inuit sculpture and this museum has a treasure trove. The lobby of the modern white addition to this museum has a multi-story wavy glass vitrine filled with Inuit pieces. It's a delicious appetizer so I eagerly went up the stairway and into a massive gallery with rows of Inuit pieces, I felt like I was 5 years old and wanted to jump up and down. Every piece is beautifully displayed and illuminated in a white-walled room that, despite having no windows, is perfectly lighted. Art appreciation is so much easier and pleasant in a room like this. This 'Art by Inuit' exhibition is a survey from approximately 200 BCE to present day. It includes typical hunting and domestic scenes of which Inuit art is most well known. There are also many works that explore the human psyche. For me, this is the humble and sincere strength of Inuit art that can grab the viewer. The small exhibition titled 'Gasoline Rainbows' features the work of Tarralik Duffy. Her leather gas cans find the sculptural beauty in the everyday world. Her Spam-container-looking leather sculpture called 'Klik' is a biting reminder of how western foods replaced the traditional foods of these northern communities. There's more to the WAG in their ultra-cool Brutalist building. A surprising gallery of European Old Masters is one of the better small collections in Canada. Another gallery has Impressionist and mid-20th century paintings. (The harsh lighting in these galleries could use the magic touch from the Inuit galleries.) A cavernous exhibition featuring the meticulous works of Tim Gardner, an artist who I'm embarrassed to say that I'd never heard of, blew me away. That one person could churn out so many detailed paintings and watercolors seems impossible. His works include portraits, images of liquor bottles, hyper-realistic paintings copied from amateur photos, and images of Los Angeles so engaging that I felt as he had entered my mind and tagged along on bike rides through my old neighborhoods. The WAG is a joy, both architecturally and in the art on display. For dessert, the gift shop can't be missed. Several Canadian art museums do something that is more rare in the States: feature and sell compelling works by local and regional artists. This isn't the books, mass-produced art/souvenirs, and t-shirts often for sale in other museums. There is genuine one-of-a-kind art and shelves of superior quality artisan-created crafts for sale. It's like a little museum in itself. I happily walked out with an Inuit sculpture that could have been included in the exhibition upstairs.

When I was here, the galleries were full of flower arrangements inspired by the artworks they were…read morepresented with. I've never seen anything like it in a museum before and it was an interesting idea. I happened to show up during the opening for this event, so the gallery was pretty lively. While there are wall cards giving background on the curatorial direction and on individual pieces, I found they assumed a familiarity with Manitoba's history that I lacked. It was refreshing to see so many pieces of art by artists I'm unfamiliar with and to leave with a long list of things to look up later. It inspired me to pick up some books after my visit. That said, they also have a small, thoughtful selection of the sort of stuff you expect to see in an art museum in North America. So if you want to see representations of the standard European and Canadian art movements and pieces by familiar names, you'll find those, too.

attended opening night of the Polish pavilion 2024. Granted it was their first evening. Venue ,…read morepeople and entertainment were great. Food was sub par, was served cold and veal/pork cutlets were dry and very tough. Nice to try great Polish beer. Paul C

We went to the 2023 German Pavilion this evening and I was so disappointed with everything,…read moreespecially the food. I have been going to the German show for many years (before covid) and have always loved the show and food, but not this time, I am thinking I won't ever go again. The bratwurst was so over cooked and dry that I could not tell the difference between the meat & the bun, the potato salad was undercooked so my potatoes were crunchy. I could have played hockey with the pretzel, it was rock hard. The apple strudel was also dry & tasted like something I could buy in a grocery store....yuck. The show was subpar....it was not well done at all...It all definitely was not worth the $35 that we each paid to get in and eat. I do not recommend going there.

Check out their website for ongoing shows. Comedy, improv, music of all kinds. Great for people who…read morelike something a little more intimate. A quirky venue for sure, but never a dull moment and they get some big names stopping by so keep your ears open!

From the owner: From March 2013 to August 2015, the Purple Room was an underground venue within Frame Arts…read moreWarehouse. Since then, we've been producing music & comedy events at various venues and spaces around Winnipeg, including the Cube at Old Market Square, X-Cues Café & Lounge, Le Patio 340, and the Manitoba Night Market and Festival.

I just wrote a review on downtown Winnipeg. I won't be making a duplicate review here. Rather, this…read morereview is more of my experience being a transplanted Torontonian and Markhamite living in Winnipeg for seven years. I am a latecomer to almost every trend you can think of. Many of my friends moved away for either college or university after graduating from high school. I didn't. I stayed within the greater Toronto area (GTA) and attended York University. Don't get me wrong. I wouldn't trade that decision for the world. My growing up and being independent happened after I got my undergraduate degree. I got accepted into a master's program at the University of Manitoba. I packed up and moved to the capital of Manitoba. The unexpected happened. The faculty at the U of M went on strike. I got tired of waiting. I dropped out of graduate school and went into the workforce. I spent a grand total of nine years away from the GTA, of which seven were in Winnipeg. Being away moulded me as a person and gained so much experience that I will always have a soft spot for the city. I held three different job positions. It wasn't difficult for me to remain in the Information Technology sector. Plugging in my car in the winter and having a remote car starter installed were two details that I wouldn't have known about had I still lived in the GTA. Learning that -40°C is the same in Fahrenheit was also eye-opening. From seeing my eyelashes crystalize when it was that cold, to ignoring experts to not leave your car running for more than a minute, it's a different kind of cold in this city. I would drive to work by the airport for twenty minutes with a windchill of -52°C and my car's interior was just starting to warm up. The provincial slogan is Friendly Manitoba. It is the case. Folks are friendly on the whole. You can take walks and say hi to strangers. You can easily strike up a conversation waiting in line at the supermarket. It's all good. By car, you can get anywhere in twenty minutes on a decent day. It's a city, but it still has a town feeling. I left Winnipeg when the population was around 700,000. These days, it's at 850,000. I have a feeling that it will hit one million in a couple of decades. Sure, it's both the Slurpee and mosquito capital of Canada. Winnipeg has a lot of charm as you get a sugary high and slap away these pests. Eating out is amazing in this city. I have had everything from squid ink pasta to spaghetti pie. Winnipeg got me into food. I also continued to develop a fondness for exploring grocery stores. I especially liked a gourmet store on Academy Road that had the best cheese sticks. I hope that it's still there. Naturally, hockey is a passion. Winnipeggers get it. They love supporting hockey at any level. It also has a number of solid hockey arenas, including Canada Life Centre downtown. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers are a popular team. Winnipeg Stadium used to be this football team's home. Like with Winnipeg Arena, Winnipeg Stadium also got demolished. The Bombers now play at Investors Group Field at the University of Manitoba. It was weird speeding onto campus at 50 km/h (it used to be 60!) and then parking to take in a football game. It's enjoyable seeing fellow Bomber fans heckle one another... haha! I lived in Osborne Village for the majority of my time. I loved how eclectic this area was and still is. I had Safeway and Shoppers Drug Mart within walking distance. The Granite Curling Club was across the river from my apartment. Catching the Winnipeg Transit bus was a cinch. There's everything from eateries and pubs, to piercings and gift stores. I loved walking around this area and discovering something new about it. What may surprise folks is that Winnipeg has a Francophone community. Saint Boniface has cool cafes and dessert places. I loved checking out eateries serving authentic French dishes, and my first time having escargot and frog legs. Saint Boniface Cathedral and Le Musée de Saint-Boniface Museum are notable touristy places to visit. The cost of living is lower in this city than most major cities in Canada. I miss the sunshine. Winnipeg is third on the sunniest cities in Canada, behind Calgary and Edmonton. Winnipeg does have its quirks. I did rotating shift work and found a hand-wand car wash open 24 hours a day with a fried chicken joint attached to it. I loved it! I hope that it's still around or has another eatery with the car wash. There is lots to do. I participated in everything from the Winnipeg Folk Festival and Folklorama with a cultural passport in the summer, to Festival du Voyageur and Canad Inns Winter Wonderland. Although it can get hot and cold temperature-wise on both ends of the spectrum, weather doesn't prevent folks from taking part in outdoor activities. I enjoyed living in Winnipeg. It was nice to return recently after nearly eight years. My stay was short, but I hope to come back a lot sooner and stay longer. (107)

Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on…read morethe confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. As of 2021, Winnipeg had a city population of 749,607 and a metropolitan population of 834,678, making it the sixth-largest city, and eighth-largest metropolitan area in Canada. I spent one week visiting my relatives here, absolutely different from the US, where Tim Hortons is their coffee instead of Starbucks, everything open 24 hours, Subway, Dairy Queen also a big thing here; Toys R Us still exists, Costco sells poutine and pretty much any places that serve food, hockey is a thing, the weather was below zero, cleaning snow every morning, each household has a big basement; the road is not flat, super bumpy, needs new asphalt; a lot of lakes, a lot of old beautiful architecture, fishing also a thing, a lot of festival, mostly commute by city street, very hard to get around by buses, cost of food is cheaper, everything written in both French and English, feel much peaceful and quiet, not rush rush rush, it just fits me so well. I wish I had more time, but I definitely come back in the future.

The Harvest Moon Festival has been around for a long time! I remember my first time during the mid…read more2000s! Every year it seems to be bigger and better organized. This time, I came as a volunteer. I was stationed to direct vendor parking. After my shift, I enjoyed the festivities. Lots of performances throughout the day ranging from taiko drumming to chinese fan dance to live raffles! The mayor of Arcadia even came on stage to give a few words! The festival is organized systematically. All the food booths/trucks were in one area. Booths selling trinkets/toys/jewelry were in another section. Health care services were in another corner. Free flu shots available! Many vendors were enticing people to come up to their tables with spin-the-wheel games for free swag. Although, many stations required you to fill out your contact info. Some of the best swag came from Toyota and Wells Fargo. The weather was too hot so I didn't partake in too many vendor interaction. Suggestions for those coming in the future, bring a hat and water! Lots of shaded areas, but the sun is quite strong! Also, bring cash for food. Many food stands, particularly the Asian ones, didn't accept credit cards. Dogs are welcome, saw many cute doggies! I'll probably be back next year, maybe to volunteer again.

This review is for the 2015 LA18 Harvest Moon Festival…read more What an incredibly HOT day to host an outdoor festival. Goodness gracious it was absolutely sweltering. Despite the horrific weather, turnout was actually still quite decent. Many festival-goers sported large sunbrellas and hats in (futile) attempt to minimize the experience of hell-like temperatures while checking out everything that was there. From what I could observe, vendors were loosely organized into sections for food, religion, healthcare, and trinkets/misc. Performances lasted all throughout the day and included appearances by YouTube favorites such as WongFu, Jason Chen, Cathy Nguyen, and more. There were even inflatable games/contraptions for the kids behind all the booths! All the qualifications for being a family friendly event: check. However, while there was certainly a decent variety of vendors and entertainment, I felt that there could have been more. The entire event honestly looked very lazily put together and for this to be their 20th year hosting this, I was disappointed by the lack of effort. Compared to 626/OC Night Market (which is still relatively new!) and university involvement fairs/open house, this tiny festival definitely has a lot of room for improvement. Also, anyone else wondering why this event isn't held on the actual day of the moon festival?? I just don't understand because moon festival happens to fall on a Sunday this year anyway... Maybe it was the killer heat, maybe it was that last performance in which one of the musicians was acting suspiciously high, maybe I'm just upset my 23 year old self is too big to play on those inflatable slides, but whatever the case, I don't see myself coming back next year.

The Folklorama festivities at this location were fantastic! Great dancing and music and the food…read morewas pretty good! On the weekends they still serve Scandinavian food, check their website for more information. I tried their Salmon dish and a healthy dessert called Lefse. Lefse is a Scandinavian Crepe. My Crepe had whipped cream and strawberries. My ex boyfriend tried it too along with their Scandinavian meatballs and vegetables dish. He said it was very good and I agree. The mashed potatoes under the meatballs with the gravy was addicting!

Another delicious meal from grace cafe. I loved the turkey melt, more than their corn beef melt…read more Servers are very kind, food came out promptly. Spent the entire afternoon studying here.