Spend a day with the family at Mennonite Heritage Village

On Canada Day our family took a stroll back in time to a simpler time that showed the values of family, tradition, and great food. We spent the day at the Mennonite Heritage Village in Steinbach, Manitoba.

When you first walk onto the museum grounds it is just like walking back in time. The architecture and handcrafted buildings make you truly appreciate the hardworking fortitude that the Mennonite fore fathers had when they first immigrated to Southeast Manitoba. To greet us we were first introduced to family lineage. If you have any family member who is of the Anabaptist background (Mennonite) they will be able to trace your family tree back many generations with details about family members. We got a print out of some of our family tree and it was quite neat to see.

There is also a gallery that traces the trial, tribulations and journeys of the Mennonites dating back from the 1500’s.

From there we traveled to the Livery Barn Restaurant where they serve traditional Mennonite food. Cabbage borsht, farmer sausage, perogies with white gravy, coleslaw and rhubarb platz are common. These are just some of the fabulous foods that would make any foodie drool. On special events they even have an outdoor booth that sells traditional Mennonite waffles made over a fire and served with a sweet white pudding like sauce – there is always a line-up for this special treat.

This year the Mennonite Heritage Village has a new gallery that explains the food of the Mennonite history. In the grand hall they have a new exhibit Mennonite Food: Tastes in Transition. Local high school students complied photo’s and descriptions on traditional Mennonite food that makes you want to eat till you can’t eat no more.

We also learned that family was important to the early settlers of Southeast Manitoba and the museum makes sure that this is not forgotten. There is a keen sense of wanting this to be a family destination with a key emphasis on children. During larger events at the Museum there are many children’s activities set up including crafts, activities and face painting. Also barrel rides and horse drawn carriage rides are also options for seeing more of the grounds. Our girls also enjoyed seeing the old homes and seeing how families and farms co-existed in olden days. Even the barn is a must stop for children wanting to see live farms animals.

Be sure to pop by the candy booth – this year it is located under the steam shelter – our daughters loved selecting some 5 cent treats.

And as far as entertainment goes, the tent is constantly playing music for all musical tastes. For those wanting a hear a traditional Low German play to children’s entertainers, the entire family will be taken care of.

While wandering around the grounds traditional buildings are maintained to standards that the pioneers would be proud of. There is a functional blacksmiths shop where you can see blacksmiths working on various iron pieces and the general store that houses only local artisans crafts that can be purchased by the public.

The Mennonite Heritage Village Museum is a place where the whole family can be entertained. As you climb to the second level of the functional Windmill you can see all that the grounds has to offer. However when we looked over the grounds the unwritten theme was families. Young and old generations gathered together to have fun and be with each other. This happens year after year and our family will be no exception to that unwritten theme.

Be sure to mark your calendar for these upcoming events – fun events for all ages.

A special thank-you to Travel Manitoba and the Mennonite Heritage Village for this experience. All opinions expressed are my own. 

You may also like:

Tips to keep your valuables safe while traveling.

image via shutterstock

You can sign-up to get an email update each day. You can also connect with us on:

• Facebook
• Pinterestshutterstock.com/…/stock-photo-tourists-couple-travel-having-fun-smiling-happy-in-havana-cuba-young-interracial-happy-couple-on
• Instagram
•  Twitter
• Google+
• Blog Lovin’