Winnipeg - The Forks. Review on Canada, General

Startup

Winnipeg! Name of the place was really interesting when I heard it for the first time. Last three alphabets reminded me about alcohol. This was my second Canada visit. Previously it was Calgary during November 2007 and I were able to enjoy -25 degrees there and you know it is really tough. When I checked weather forecast of Winnipeg, it indicated temperature range of 5 to 15 degrees, since it was just the beginning of their winter

*Bangalore Airport

*It was my first international fly from Bangalore International Airport. Compared to old HAL airport, this one is great. I was prepared to fly for long 32 hours with two transits, Frankfurt and Toronto. I went through my check-in and customs check along with the other guys at around 11pm Sunday, Sept 28th 2008. I had to buy some liquor for my friends in Bangalore on my way back. I just visited the liquor shop in Bangalore International airport and it was really nice to see different brands and types of alcohol placed in a very attractive manner.

I started waiting for Lufthansa flight boarding call which was scheduled for 1 am, 29th Sept 08. Time went easily with the art of window shopping. I was watching people who were waiting to board the same flight. Everybody seems to be very busy on what they were doing(except me). I thought of acting like a busy man, opened my laptop and went through some of my project files. At last gate opened for boarding and I was about to get up from my seat. Suddenly I realized that it was a boarding call for people traveling in business class. Now I felt the distinction between people among us; rich and poor; professionals from big companies and small companies. Anyway I had to wait, for the call for economy class boarding.

*To Frankfurt

*At last it happened after some more waiting. Inside flight, I got my seat nearby some Northies who were working with some software companies in Bangalore. They seemed to be frequent travelers, one guy comparing Lufthansa flight facilities with other flights. I realized that economy class passengers don’t have mini TV in front of them. That was a real blow. How can I spend 8 hours flight without even a TV? Only way to spent time was sleeping and I have to make sure that I wake up whenever cabin crew starts serving snacks.

Call from cabin crew woke me up. She was talking about landing in Frankfurt shortly. Place of quality products(people proclaim so) and football! They are the only things which I know about Germany. After getting down from my flight, I found the gate for my next flight. They had long seats without partitions, near the gates where I found many people enjoying their sleep. Quest for a nice sleep overpowered my decent manners and I just lay down with my full body on one of the available seat. It was a real relaxation and I really enjoyed those moments. I had a sound sleep until I hear the alarm set on my mobile.

*To Winnipeg via Toronto

*Next flight had a LCD TV attached to economy class seats. This was a blessing since it was a day journey and I saw two films. After getting down at Toronto I had to go through two customs interviews and at last managed to get into Winnipeg flight. One Indian guy Mr. Pravin, came to airport to pick me up and he dropped me in Hotel Best Western on Pembina Highway(That’s what they call that particular hotel). Room was not bad at all, but it didn’t have any cooking facilities. I made a call to my parents to tell the updates.

Life in Winnipeg

I was introduced to all guys working in customer’s office. I think Canadians basically have the readiness to accept other people even though the strangers are different from them. I could complete my work before time and I had too much time for relaxing, the luxury which I never had during my last one year’s busy professional life. When I told this to my mom, in her opinion it was god’s grace to make me free from tight schedules. Even though it was boring, I enjoyed two weeks in Winnipeg.

Routine of waking up at 6 am, checking mails, getting fresh, calling home, having breakfast, going office at 8.30 am, going for lunch(only burgers and sandwiches) with Mr. Pravin, coming back from office to hotel at 6 pm, having free soup from hotel, watching TV, dinner from Wendy’s(again burgers or sandwiches), and finally sleeping at 10pm, went on all working days I spend here in Winnipeg. It was quite boring, rather mechanical I would say.

*The Forks

*There were two exceptions on this routine. First was on Saturday Oct 4th, when we(Mr. Pravin and Mr. Guru, both from Bangalore) decided to go out and the place selected was “The Forks”. It was the joining of two rivers whose names I don’t remember now. We started at around 11.30 am from their room. Pravin had to buy cigars and cigarettes because he was also going to Bangalore on next weekend. Shopkeeper was an Indian and he suggested some types and brands for Pravin and he bought it for 40 CAN dollars. We went to “Forks” by bus. We had our short lunch from a Sri Lankan restaurant.

Pravin had a SLR camera and he started shooting snaps as soon as we started our riverside walking. Guru and I also started capturing snaps of that place and visitors. We spent some time there watching boats, kayaking etc. It was nice to watch Canadians enjoying the place and I didn’t find the place too great since riverside is a normal view in Kerala which you will get by traveling a distance of 10 kms . On our way back, we bought beer which is really cheap(1.25 CAN dollar) compared to any other commodities. It’s the same for petrol. We talked a lot along with beer sips, discussing more on share market, cultural differences between Indians and Canadians etc. which reached nowhere.Climate during winter is the main issue in Canada. You may not be able to go out when you need because of this damn chilling weather. It’s not surprising that Canada have very low population density. And you cannot swim in any water bodies when you go for picnic. I prefer India, especially Kerala for such things. Climate is a natural gift which you cannot change. I believe life style, culture, diet, hobbies and everything you have, changes with climate.

*Last day at Winnipeg

*Days move through and it was Friday, my last working day in Winnipeg. Customer arranged a free Pizza lunch as a sendoff for me and Pravin who were leaving Winnipeg on that weekend. In the evening Guru, me and Soofi(a guy from Cambodia who was an immigrant in Canada) decided to roam around in his car. First we went for a movie which was quite cheap(Only 3 CAN dollar), but cool drinks and snacks cost us around 20 dollars. After that we decided to have a drink together. I had tequila with Soofi and Guru managed with a cool drink since he doesn’t take alcohol. Soofi told that night life in Winnipeg starts only after 11 pm and it was only 9 pm. Snooker was our next time pass and for that we went to a Pub near “The Forks”. After finishing 3 games we decided to wind up with a dinner. We had to manage with McDonald’s burgers since Indian restaurant was about to close as we reached there. It was a nice farewell for me and I really enjoyed it.