Museum sights in Canada
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Museum
Be sure to join Babe Ruth as one of the visitors who've signed the guest book at the Banff Park Museum - he did so in 1922. Near the Bow River Bridge at the southern end of town, this lodge-style wood building was built by the CPR in 1903. Check out the surprising inner atrium.
Before trails first led curious wildlife watchers into the bush, the museum housed a zoo and aviary, so Victorian visitors to Banff could catch a safe glimpse of the park's wildlife. The museum, a National Historic Site, contains a collection of animals, birds and plants found in the park, including two small stuffed grizzlies and a black bear, plus a tree carved with graffiti dating back to 1841.…
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Dionne Quints Museum
North Bay has never seen the mining-related booms and busts inherent to most towns in northern Ontario. In fact, the area was rather unremarkable until five little girls briefly turned the city into the most visited destination in Ontario after Niagara Falls. These little girls were the Dionne Quints – identical quintuplets. Born during the Great Depression, they were exploited as a tourist attraction by the provincial government. Their fame became so widespread that they even starred in four Hollywood films. Today, the Dionne Quints Museum contains a fascinating collection of artifacts from their early years. (Their later years haven't been such a happy story – growing…
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Musée McCord
With hardly an inch to spare in its cramped but welcoming galleries, the McCord Museum of Canadian History houses nearly one million artifacts and documents illustrating Canada’s social, cultural and archaeological history from the 18th century to present day. The eclectic collection has large sections on Canada’s earliest European settlement and the history of Québec’s indigenous people; other display highlights include embroidered gowns, toys, prints and First Nations’ works. The 2nd-floor gallery neatly encapsulates French-Canadian history in Québec. There’s also a gift shop and an inviting café. In summer it’s also open Monday.
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Science North
This huge science center is a major regional attraction conspicuously housed in two snowflake-shaped buildings on the edge of Lake Ramsey. After passing through a tunnel dug deep within the 2.5-billion-year-old Canadian Shield, take the elevator to the top and work your way down through the spiral of exciting hands-on activities. Wander through a living butterfly garden, stargaze in the digital planetarium, explore rocks through a microscope, build an empire out of Lego or fly away on a bushplane simulator. The blue-coated staff are exceptionally friendly and can tackle the most obscure questions about the displays. Major exhibits change regularly, as do the films…
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Alberta Railway Museum
This museum, on the northeast edge of the city, has a collection of more than 50 railcars, including steam and diesel locomotives and rolling stock, built and used between 1877 and 1950. It also has a collection of railway equipment, old train stations and related buildings. On weekends, volunteers fire up some of the old engines and you can ride along for $4 (the diesel locomotives run every Sunday in season; the 1913 steam locomotive gets going only on holiday weekends). To get there, drive north on 97th St (Hwy 28) to Hwy 37, turn right and go east for 7km to 34th St, then turn right and go south about 2km.
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Science World & Alcan Omnimax Theatre
Nestled under the city’s gleaming geodesic dome (or ‘silver golf ball’ as the locals often call it) are two levels of hands-on science, technology and natural-history exhibits aimed at satisfying the most enquiring of minds. It’s an ideal place to bring kids – the gallery that explores sustainability issues is recommended, along with the water course of ball cannons and bridges. Expect to spend at least a few hours here. Level 3 holds the 400-seat Omnimax Theatre (tickets $10), showing large-format documentary movies to those who need a sit down.
Level 3 holds the 400-seat Omnimax Theatre (tickets around C$10), showing large-format documentary movies to those…
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Discovery Pavilion
the main gateway to Battlefields Park, the Discovery Pavilion houses a museum as well as the excellent Québec City tourist office, Centre Infotouriste. The main draw here is the permanent exhibition entitled Odyssey. In it, you move from theater to theater where the history of the Plains of Abraham are depicted through clever multimedia presentations and generous doses of good humor. There’s a fine exhibit at the end devoted to French and British colonial military with displays depicting the lives of soldiers in the New World. The exhibit on their uniforms, which describes the significance of the designs and colors, is nicely done.
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Nunavik Information Centre
Far in Québec’s north, Nunavik (not to be confused with Canada’s third territory, Nunavut) is almost completely inhabited by Inuit. With no trains or roads into Nunavik, even most Quebecers know little about the Inuit culture or this fascinating region. This modest center was opened mainly to promote tourism to the area’s 14 villages, but it’s an interesting place for a short stop just to look at the wall pictures or the small craft displays. It’s an incredibly friendly place and the employees are more than willing to shoot the breeze for the genuinely curious, answering questions on anything from the Inuit language to Inuit culture.
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Revelstoke Railway Museum
Revelstoke Railway Museum, in an attractive building across the tracks from the town center, contains restored steam locomotives, including one of the largest steam engines ever used on Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) lines. Photographs and artifacts document the construction of the CPR, which was instrumental – actually essential – in linking eastern and western Canada.
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Pier 21 Centre
Named by CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) as one of the Seven Wonders of Canada, Pier 21 was to Canada what Ellis Island was to the USA. Between 1928 and 1971 over a million immigrants entered Canada through Pier 21. Their stories and the historical context that led them to abandon their homelands are presented in this museum. Researchers fanned out across Canada to get first-hand testimonials from immigrants who passed through Pier 21. These moving videos are shown in screening rooms off a railcar – bring your hankie.
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Vancouver Police Centennial Museum
Colorfully charting the city’s murky criminal past, displays at this excellent little museum include an autopsy room with pieces of damaged body parts posted on the wall (note the brain with a.22 caliber bullet in it) and an exhibit describing how to determine a corpse’s age via insects (blowflies appear in 15 days, cheese-skippers in 40 days). Visitors can see what a 1oz lump of heroin looks like or peruse bad-ass weaponry, including a gangster-era Thompson submachine gun. Also consider the gripping Sins of the City walking tour ($12), which escorts curious visitors through the dodgy Downtown Eastside’s eye-popping vice and crime-fighting history.
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Canadian War Museum
This museum still has that new-car smell. The metallic building is itself an eye-catching sculptural gesture, and is worth a glance even if you don't plan on visiting the exhibits. Fascinating displays wind through the labyrinthine interior, tracing the country's military history with Canada's most comprehensive collection of military artifacts. Many of the exhibits were constructed on a human scale, including a haunting life-sized replica of a WWI trench. Don't forget to take a second look at the facade in the evening – flickering lights pulse on and off spelling 'Lest We Forget' and 'CWM' in Morse code (in both English and French, of course).
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Chinese Cultural Centre Museum & Archives
Check out this museum for a deeper understanding of the often-turbulent history of Vancouver’s Chinese immigrants. Changing exhibits are on the main floor, while the 2nd floor’s permanent collection highlights Gold Rush history and Chinatown settlement. It also houses the Military Museum, showcasing the sometimes unsung role of Chinese-Canadian soldiers in both world wars. The museum is linked to the Cultural Centre (50 E Pender St) where you can sign up for short workshops in calligraphy, t’ai chi and Chinese music. The centre also offers museum tours (adult/child $4/3) and Chinatown walking tours (adult/child $8/5).
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Johnson Geo Centre
Nowhere in the world can geo-history, going back to the birth of the earth, be accessed so easily as in Newfoundland, and the Geo Centre does a grand job of making snore-worthy geological information perk up with appeal via its underground, interactive displays.
The center also has an exhibit on the Titanic, and how human error and omission caused the tragedy, not just an iceberg. For instance, the ship's owners didn't supply her with enough lifeboats so as not to 'clutter the deck,' and the crew ignored myriad ice warnings. What any of this has to do with geology remains unclear, but who cares? It's fascinating.
Trails with interpretive panels wind around outside. The Geo…
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The Rooms
Not many museums offer the chance to see a giant squid, hear avant-garde sound sculptures and peruse ancient weaponry all under one roof. But that's The Rooms, the province's all-in-one historical museum, art gallery and archives. Frankly, the building is much more impressive to look at than look in, since its frequently changing exhibits are sparse. But whoa! The views from this massive stone-and-glass complex, which lords over the city from a breath-sapping hilltop, are eye-poppers; try the 4th-floor cafe for the best vistas. There's free admission Wednesday evenings.
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Vancouver Museum
One of the three well-established educational attractions clustered together in Vanier Park, the Vancouver Museum recounts both distant and recent city history. It includes some colorful displays on 1950s pop culture and 1960s hippy counterculture - a reminder that Kits was once the grass-smoking center of Vancouver's flower-power movement. Permanent exhibits include a look at the everyday life of First Nations people; passenger quarters on a groaning life-sized immigrant ship; and a full-scale sawmill wheel. The temporary exhibits are usually intriguing - check the museum's website to see what's coming up.
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Hockey Hall of Fame
Inside an ornate rococo gray stone Bank of Montreal building (c 1885) on the Yonge St lower concourse, the Hockey Hall of Fame gives hockey fans everything they could possibly want. Check out the collection of Texas Chainsaw Massacre–esque goalkeeping masks, attempt to stop Wayne Gretzky's virtual shot or have your photo taken with hockey's biggest prize – the hefty Stanley Cup (no trifling shield or pint-sized urn for these boys, oh no). Even visitors unfamiliar with this super-fast, ultra- violent sport will be impressed with the interactive multimedia exhibits and hockey nostalgia.
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Canada Aviation and Space Museum
With nearly 120 aircraft housed in the steel triangular hangar, the aviation museum almost feels bigger than Ottawa's actual airport. Stroll through the mammoth warehouse, try the flight simulator, and get up close and personal with colorful planes ranging from the Silver Dart of 1909 to the first turbo-powered Viscount passenger jet.
Call ahead to check opening hours, as they vary according to attendance levels and time of year. If you show up an hour before closing, you might be let in for free. The museum is 5km northeast (along Rockcliffe Pkwy). Take bus 129 from downtown.
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Musée Redpath
A Victorian spirit of discovery pervades this old natural history museum, though you won’t find anything more gruesome than stuffed animals from the Laurentians hinterland. The Redpath Museum houses a large variety of specimens, including a dinosaur skeleton and seashells donated from around the world. A highlight is the 3rd-floor Ethnology Gallery, which traces the beginnings of human civilization. It includes Egyptian mummies, shrunken heads and artifacts from ancient Mediterranean, African and East Asian communities. In winter it’s also open Friday.
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Musée Juste Pour Rire
The Just for Laughs Museum is the seat of the summer comedy festival of the same name. Apparently comedian George Burns was nearly killed by a brick of fake banknotes here, but otherwise guffaws are few and far between. A favorite with kids, the Abracadabra show reveals a fascinating glimpse of magic and magicians behind the scenes. The adjacent Cabaret Theater (845-2014) stages special events and shows.
This warehouse space runs the best 100 comedy clips from comics around the world, from Roberto Benigni to Steve Martin, in its International Humor Hall of Fame.
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Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre
A visit to the Soo's most dynamic museum is an excellent way to learn about the idiosyncrasies of northern Ontario culture. A 20-minute film explains the importance of bushplanes in the region, as several remote communities are not accessible by road. The jiving soundtrack captures the sense of adventure associated with this oft-used form of transportation. Stroll amongst retired bushplanes to get a sense of how tiny these flyers really are. A flight simulator takes passengers on a spirited ride along sapphire lakes and towering pines (you might even get a little wet!).
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Canadian Museum of Nature
Sparkling after a massive, seemingly endless renovation, this vast museum pokes its Gothic head up just beyond the skyline, south of downtown. The gaping four-story museum houses an impressive collection of fossils, minerals and animals, a full skeleton of a blue whale, and an excellent stock of dinosaurs from Alberta. Everyone's favorite section is the realistic mammal and bird dioramas depicting Canadian wildlife. The taxidermic creatures are so lifelike, you'll be glad that they're behind a sheet of glass.
Buses 5, 6 and 14 transport passengers to McLeod St.
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Biosphère
Located in the striking spherical dome of the former American pavilion in the ‘67 World’s Fair, the center has the most spectacular collection of hands-on displays in the entire city. Exhibits focus on the world of water, the St Lawrence River ecosystem (which, together with the Great Lakes, makes up 25% of the planet’s freshwater reserves) and emerging ecotechnologies. Hands-on exhibits all involve real water, and though primarily geared to kids, big people will also find it worthwhile. The upstairs Visions Hall offers a great view of the river.
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Canadian Broadcasting Centre
Toronto's enormous Canadian Broadcasting Centre is the headquarters for English-language radio and TV across Canada. French-language production is in Montréal, which leaves the president (in a truly Canadian spirit of compromise) stranded in Ottawa.
You can peek at the radio newsrooms anytime or attend a concert in the world-class Glenn Gould Studio. Don't miss the miniature-sized CBC Museum with its amazing collection of antique microphones (the 1949 RCA 74DX is a doozy!), sound-effects machines, tape recorders and puppets from kids' TV shows. Next door the Graham Spry Theatre screens ever-changing CBC programming.
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Toronto's First Post Office
Dating from the 1830s, the old post office is now a living museum. After you've written your letter with a quill and ink, seal it with wax and send it postmarked 'York-Toronto 1833' for a small fee. Famous folks like William Lyon Mackenzie and the Baldwins once rented postal boxes here. At the back is an old-fashioned reading room with historical displays and a model of Toronto c 1833. Self-guided tour pamphlets are available at the door. Look for the British and Canadian flags flying out front, just west of the Bank of Upper Canada building.
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