Western Development Museum Saskatoon

Day two of the PFE Ukrainian Dance Showcase got underway today straight and early at 8:00am. We were up at around 6:00am in order to eat breakfast, get dressed, and head out to the venue in time for the first rehearsal. 

Unfortunately for me, the day got off to a frustrating start at our hotel. The breakfast area was extremely busy first thing this morning. I think that there were a group of Ukrainian dancers and a volleyball team both up early to get to their events. This was tough as there was nowhere to sit in the breakfast area and all of the food stations were full of people. I have to admit, I don't like crowds at the best of times, but especially so in this "post COVID" era. By the time we got our food and then had to head back up to our hotel room to eat, I was severely irritated. This is not something that I'm proud of but I was fit to be tied.

We got to the venue on time and my elder daughter got into her rehearsal. There was a lot of tension in the room. I think that the instructor for our team had not slept much over the past week. She was definitely on edge. A group of parents for our team were trying to take a group photo after the rehearsal and were creating a bit of commotion while the instructor was trying to ready a group of much younger dancers. The instructor had to shout twice, "Guys! Please stop making noise. What you are doing is not a priority right now!" I'm not sure if this message got across though. I just wanted to get out of there and let the dancers prepare for their competitions.

I had not slept well at the hotel during the past couple of nights. By 10:00 this morning, this lack of sleep started to catch up with me and my younger daughter as well. She didn't have any dances today so her and I were simply watching from the audience. I hate to admit it but both of us were having a terrible time staying awake. My daughter fell asleep next to me and then I started feeling very heavy eyelids. I really felt not all that well and I was quite embarrassed about falling asleep in the audience at the competition. Once I got a bit of energy back, I decided that it was time for my younger daughter and I to go for a walk and shake off the cobwebs.

The dance competition took place at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon. This is on the site of the old Saskatoon Exhibition Grounds. At this location is Marquis Downs, Saskatoon's horse race track that has been in operation since the 1960's. My daughter and I decided to walk over to the race track to see if there were any horses being exercised. To my pleasant surprise there were standardbred horses being trained on the track this morning. In the late 1970's and early to mid-1980's my Dad trained standardbred horses at the race track in Regina. This was a hobby that he did on the side. From a very young age, I was around these race horses. It has been years since I've been around horses and my daughters have had little to no exposure to horses so it was nice to go watch some being jogged around the track.

From Marquis Downs we decided to go over the Western Development Museum "1910 Boomtown" that is on the opposite side of the race track. It had been quite a few years since I was last at this museum. I can't actually remember the last time I was there. Perhaps at some point in the mid-1990's. This particular museum holds a special place for me as I went there for the first time as a very young boy in the summer of 1978. We were up in Saskatoon at Marquis Downs as my Dad's horses were racing there for a few weeks that summer. I remember being quite interested in the old "boomtown" exhibits at the time. They all seemed so strange and atmospheric. I don't believe that I fully comprehended how people lived back in 1910. I'm pretty sure that my daughter went through the same experience today. She asked many questions about the old town and how people used to live over 100 years ago. I think this may have been close to the same experience that I had 46 years ago.

A number of new exhibits have been added to the museum since 1978. Of note are those dealing with the great depression era in Saskatchewan and the impact that this had on farms and rural towns. It was interesting to see how the "1910 boomtown" was decimated by the depression and the dust bowl conditions of that era. Another newer exhibit dealt with the impacts of WWII and the subsequent changes in technologies and living standards that happened throughout the 1950's and 60's right up to the present day. This really drove the point home that the way we live today is something that the people of 1910 could not have even dreamed of. Hell, the people of the 1960's likely could not fully comprehend all that we have today. This was a good reminder for me. Despite all of the problems and challenges that we face today, we are (at least materially) much better off than the people that lived here over 100 years ago. 

Horse-drawn fire engine.

Back in 1978 you could stand on this old handcar. Not anymore.

Sod house during the depression. Not for me...

There is clearly value in looking back through history and trying to understand where we've come from. I'm so glad that my daughter and I went to the museum both for some nostalgia and for some education.