I wanted to start Saturday with a sunrise (5:09 am) run, but when I woke up a minute (grrr!) before my 4:00 am alarm to use the bathroom, I said eff it and went back to bed for an hour. So I started the run a little before 6:00, which was probably better anyway – I needed the sun up to warm my legs (I only brought running shorts and it was in the high 30s)!

My plan was to run north to the University of Saskatchewan and run through campus, then come back down the trail. I ended up doing all that, but I also meandered through the central business district too. I enjoyed running through the neighborhoods and seeing the different styles of houses, and seeing all the different styles of campus buildings, too!

I’m really grateful I got to run and see so much while I was here. I only have one running regret, which I share below…

After I got back to the hotel and cleaned up and did a load of laundry (I didn’t want gross (well, wet and gross – they are definitely gross and stinky all the time) running clothes in my bag), we went to Collective Coffee in the Riversdale neighborhood. This was another random place I wrote down for us to check out after seeing it on a Saskatoon social media feed (Instagram! It’s useful!).

Steven got an Americano and I got a chai (both were excellent). We were admiring the metal and wood design while our drinks were being made, and the barista told us the metal was reclaimed from an elevator at a dim sum place down the street, and that the wood is reclaimed from a local vinegar factory, and didn’t require any additional staining. Cool!

The barista ended up being Jackson, the owner, and we had a fun conversation with him about coffee, Saskatoon recommendations, and of course, politics (they used to brew Intelligentsia coffee, but the tariffs on it are too high to import it now).

After that (via a bakery detour where we didn’t get anything) we went to the Remai Modern Museum. The museum opened in October 2017, and was designed by Bruce Kuwabara of KPMB Architects (a Canadian firm). The building is stunning – the form of it is inspired by the low, flat topography of the region, and the building materials are similar to those on local barns and sheds. We loved seeing the exterior and interior of it.

Those white things are all window shades! Those cheap-o flimsy ones!

Our admission was only $8 CAD each because some of the exhibits were closed. We were fine with that – we were mostly there to see the architecture and Picasso collection!

The Picasso collection is linocuts and a few ceramics. Linocut printing is a relief process where the areas that are carved away do not receive ink. So the art was all the different versions of the process, and some finals (at least, that is how we interpreted it). I liked seeing that, and the gallery featuring work by Canadians.

For lunch, we went to Sticks and Stones, a Japanese restaurant the güd eats waitress recommended to us on Tuesday. We got S&S Fries, Mushroom Steamed Buns (the only non-vegan thing), Vegetarian Ramen, and Bibimbap. We LOVED the potatoes. Steven said the steamed buns were good, and I really liked the ramen. The bibimbap didn’t have enough flavor for me (we didn’t add the paste/sauce to it because we didn’t care for it, so the flavor thing is our fault). YUM.

While we were there, we talked to the waitress a bit, and I asked her about their long holiday weekend – Monday is Victoria Day – a federal Canadian holiday in honor of Queen Victoria’s birthday. She said they call this long weekend the “May long weekend.” A lot of people leave the cities and go camping or to their country homes. A lot of city things shut down.

Which is funny she mentioned that because afterward, we walked to Citizen Cafe & Bakery so Steven could check it out… and they were closed for the long weekend. I mean, May long weekend. Ha ha.

We went on some drives after! We drove to campus, so Steven could see it. And I took him to Saskatchewan Crescent West – one of the few (if only?!) streets that has river front property. The houses there are amazing!

Then we drove north along the river, on the west side. And this is where my running regret became apparent – I didn’t run this part of the Meewasin Trail because I couldn’t tell how isolated it was from google maps and wasn’t sure if I’d be safe there. But there was a beautiful long park and gorgeous homes and people everywhere. Ugh – I wish I had run there! Go there if you go to Saskatoon! (Side note: everywhere I ran seemed safe.)

After that we drove south of the city, along the river, again, on the west side. We ended up at Chappell Marsh Conservation Area and went on a short walk there. I was glad we got to see the different types of landscapes around the city!

We chilled at the hotel a bit then ordered pizza and nachos from Pizza Pirates (their phone number is 306-649-ARRR, ha ha ha ha ha ha). Then it was time for packing (I somehow fit all those Starbucks mugs in my bag!!!) and bedtime with an early wake up to make our 6:00 am flight home!

Read Saskatoon Day 1 here, Day 2 here, Day 3 here, and Day 4 here.