Bucket list trip to Vegas and the Grand Canyon!

Sorry for the long post - it was the only way to get this done!

Now that my bucket is well defined and smaller than I had anticipated, we decided to plan and execute a trip to cross a few things off the list. One item on my list was to drive a Lamborghini supercar (or, if I couldn't drive, to be driven in a Rolls Royce). The supercar experience was available and it happened to be in Las Vegas!  So that was the plan. It expanded over several iterations to include Vegas shows, the driving thing, and a trip to the Grand Canyon. What a blast!

We stayed at the Luxor the first night and went to the hilarious Blue Man Group show in the building.  

At the Luxor

Our room had an external hallway and this was the view from the hall. The elevators were very far apart until I figured out that they run on an angle (it is a pyramid). Very weird feeling inside an angled elevator.

Luxor from the room levels

The room was OK, but the windows were also on a weird angle. Parker thought it was cool the way it was designed.

Inside the Luxor room

Ceiling at the top of the pyramid

Parker put on a snazzy jacket in the Vegas Knights store between the Luxor and Mandalay Bay. A little small for him, but this is apparently popular to wear going to a hockey game.

 I posed with this guy in the Guinness Store.

The Blue Man Group show was fantastic and they really made it a lot of fun for the audience. One of the most entertaining shows that I have been to. It was a little less exciting because I was nauseous (from chemo etc.), but well worth going.

The next morning was our Dream Racing Experience! The inner part of the Las Vegas Speedway is the location for this event and the weather was perfect! Maybe 20C and almost no wind. Dry as a bone (as is everything in Nevada), but a great addition to the trip.

Dream Racing, Las Vegas Speedway

Each of us drove (except Wendy) a practice ride in one car to see the track, after we had a ride in a Maserati Levante SUV. Parker says that was the wildest part!

Eric preparing for his practice lap

Once the practice was done (Eric and Parker did it in a white Maserati GranTurismo Sport - about 130 kph as a max), it was off to the real supercars!  Eric took five laps in the James Bond car, called the Aston Martin DB11. The orange was very similar to the colour of our own car, but this was one sweet ride! I took this baby up to 176 kph on one of the laps!

Eric's favourite - the Aston Martin DB11

Parker chose the Mercedes AMG GT R - he took it to 184 kph! Here is Wendy posing with it before the race.

Parker returning to the pit area after his ride

Parker in the Mercedes AMG GT R

Parker followed with the Audi R8 Sport - he went 179 kph

Parker finished with the Audi R8 sport.
He reported the ride to be not quite as exciting as he had expected, as this was his dream car.

Parker and Mel also took an extra ride along "hot lap" with the pro driving this Ferrari F458 GT. They went 201 kph.

Parker in his racing gear

I got my bucket list item on my third car, the Lamborghini Huracan Performante Edition. I'm not as cheesed about the colour of this one - a rather uninspired green - but at least it was a Lambo!  A video is pasted further down this screen.

Eric returning to pit lane in the Huracan

I have to say, I was thrilled at this very visceral physical experience. Doubt I would do it again, but it was well worth the effort (and the sore back later in the week).

Eric after his Lamborghini ride! 196 kph was my top speed!

The racing crew at the end of our day.

The racing crew waiting for our videos to be processed

VIDEO FROM YOUTUBE:
Here is a video of me driving the Lamborghini Huracan Performante - reaching 196 kph on one of the laps!  If the video doesn't work in this window, click this link https://youtu.be/6JlppKz2zJI to try it a different way.

After the racing, we had lunch at Sam's - a large casino, hotel, mall complex not far away. This is about as close as I wanted to get to the very smoky casinos, although we did a few slots the previous night at the Luxor.

We headed out to Kingman Arizona and saw many parts of old Route 66, including areas with Burma Shave ads along the highway.

At Mr. D'z ice cream float shop and diner

At Mr. D'z ice cream float shop and diner

We got to Tusayan Az early enough to go into the Grand Canyon park area itself and found some great scenery.

Along the Hermit's Road area

The next day we headed back to the canyon and did more sightseeing. We were able to slip into the El Tovar hotel and restaurant for lunch in the Grand Canyon Village. Somehow we lucked into the best table in the restaurant with a view of the canyon.

The following day we headed to through Williams Az to get to the Grand Canyon Western Lodge to stay in a cabin near the West rim of the Grand Canyon. One of the peak experiences planned was a helicopter trip down into the canyon.

Parker on his helicopter trip

 

Eric and Wendy went in the second wave

 Fantastic views all around, and we even saw the Grand Canyon glass floor tourist spot - above us!

Colorado River

Being quite ill during the midpoint of the trip, I had to bow out of an evening sunset wagon ride with champagne. However, Mel, Murray, and Parker took a horseback sunset tour and had a blast!

The ranch (going since the 1800s) has its own buffalo herd

To make up for my missed dinner and missed wagon ride, they sent us to the firing range in the morning. Wendy was, by far, the best shot!

22 cal pistol

22 cal pistol

22 cal pistol

22 cal rifle

22 cal pistol

22 cal rifle

Here is the whole crew after the firing range. Thanks to Murray for many of these photos!

At our cabin - the cowboy told us to hold on a minute while he got the props out of the van for this photo.

We headed to the Hoover Dam after the firing range and decided to stop at an interesting old gas station along old Route 66. Lots to see and buy!

Literally, out in the middle of nowhere.

An old Desoto at a very small Route 66 shop on the way to the Hoover Dam

We had read online that there were no tours at the Hoover Dam because of the elevator being broken, but Mel went to check and arranged the full tour for us, including the power station. Fantastic place and warm enough that my shivering and shaking wasn't too noticeable (major fever and maybe a lung infection at that point. Regardless, I loved the tour!

Hoover Dam

Parker got to stick his hands out into the abyss that is the face of the Dam.

Back we went to Vegas for 2 nights at the Bellagio (little did we know that Bernie Sanders chose this place for his Nevada Caucus at the same time). This place was way over the top, including the fact that our suite had 4.5 bathrooms! 

Chihuli glass ceiling in the Bellagio

We took in the show "Cirque du Soleil O" at the Bellagio the first night - WOW! It was a spectacle. We walked the strip the next morning, with a slushy being about all I could swallow (no solid food possible for most of the trip... a side effect of the radiation treatments I completed before we left). 

Eric with a (non-alcoholic) slushie

We also took in the Coke museum store and the M&Ms museum store.

Wendy's Mecca

The bear was always pawing us while we got our photo taken

The next night we went over to the Mandalay Bay and watched "Cirque du Soleil Michael Jackson One". Fantastic music and choreography. We had dinner before the show, and along with French Onion soup (I sadly couldn't eat the cheese), I had a Belching Beaver Peanut Butter Milk Stout from California. Great choice to stand up to onion!

Parker said he wasn't hungry - so he gets this massive prime rib platter! I think he ate most of it.

Fantastic Michael Jackson show!

Our last official event of the trip

Back to the Bellagio we went to check out the fountains (playing Cher at the time - she was in town doing shows... Parker didn't know who she was!) then off to bed for me. We got up early and headed back for our flights in the morning after a room service breakfast in typical Bellagio over the top style.

That week was about as bucket list as any trip could be, and I know that we all made many new memories along the way. 

And that was the point!

Our December 2019 cruise

I just realized that I forgot completely to post a few photos from our cruise in December.  I guess late is better than never, so here goes!

Our trip was booked a long time before I got my diagnosis that I would be passing away likely in the new year, so it was a nice break from our routine to give us time to process what was happening to us. We headed out to the Toronto airport in a stretch limo (nice touch, Lui, from All Seasons Transportation!).

We eventually headed to Fort Lauderdale after a 3 hr de-icing delay and were happy that we elected to go a day early. Once we boarded on the Saturday, we quickly got contact with a young man who came to our home almost a decade ago through the international air cadet exchange program. He is much older and we knew that he was a pilot in the Netherlands, but here he is as an officer cadet aboard our ship! It was great to catch up with him after so long.

Eric, Reuben, and Wendy on board the Holland America Nieuw Amsterdam

Our first stop was Key West FL, and it was not particularly exciting. We wandered around and shopped for a while before heading back to the spa on the ship. Our room, by the way, in the middle left window showing at the top of the ship (in a dark strip with 6 windows going across). Gorgeous views and a huge cabin!

Key West

Key West

Key West

Our second stop was supposed to be Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos Islands, but the ship was unable to dock because of high winds. Big ship, sideways into the wind, guaranteed to crash against the dock or the coral reef... good choice. We got an extra day at sea and a free drink of wine (yuck), but it was still relaxing.

Our next stop was Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic. Great tour of the city of Puerto Plata and we got to drink fresh coconut milk out of a coconut at the main square in town.

Dominican Republic

We did a cancer fundraiser by walking 9 laps around the ship during the next sea day. A bit dull, but we got the t-shirt! Had more meaning this time...

While on board wanting a place to relax, we went one floor up from our cabin to the Explorers Lounge. Wendy liked doing puzzles, but they kept being put away even if she was not done! Eric could have a drink and read a book while she puzzled.

Our final stop was the Holland America private island called Half Moon Cay. Beach was minimal because of the tides and the crowds were all squished into a small area. We took a glass bottom boat tour that was dismal (no fish to be seen through the floor), then sat and had a drink under the clamshell tent we had rented. Lunch was served (just like on the ship, by the same staff) and we headed back for the ship to  relax some more.

Half Moon Cay

Here is our ship stationkeeping off the island. We took tender boats but the water was very rough because of the wind.

Half Moon Cay

Half Moon Cay

Our final evening on the ship seemed like a suitable time for a nice meal in the main dining room (we had been several times). We invited Reuben and he got permission to come, as long as he had his dress uniform on. Snazzy outfit! He had never been to the dining room in the almost 9 months that he had been on the ship. It was nice to have at our table the only ship's officer in the room!

Wendy, Reuben, and Eric

This picture shows our room (3rd window from the left in the black area - right above the spa and below the Explorers Lounge. Perfect spot to get where we wanted to go most of the time.

After we got off the cruise (late - had to be tugged in due to a thruster malfunction), we took a paddlewheel cruise to see where the rich people lived along the intercoastal waterway. Although several hours after we got off our ship, we went right by it again. I took a few photos and noticed one person on the front of the ship looking over. It had to be Reuben...?

Indeed it was! He was taking a picture of the paddlewheel going by and sent this picture via Facebook while I was taking a picture of him! If you look closely, I am wearing a blue shirt and am taking a photo of him.

Eric on the paddlewheel as taken by Reuben on the ship

This is the photo I took of Reuben.  The randomness of this interaction was very memorable!

Reuben on the ship as taken by Eric on the paddlewheel

We headed back to Toronto and got home late in the evening. It was a great trip and we had our chance to process some of the things going on in our lives. The next step was to learn a new identity (cancer patient) and to start treatment on the Monday morning. 

One thing we learned a few days later was that our ship never did go back out for the next cruise. 2,500 people waiting in line to get on the next cruise had to be sent home or accommodated on a different ship. Apparently, the engine/thruster problem that caused us to be tugged into Fort Lauderdale was more serious than expected, so they repaired the ship the very next week. The ship also later got put into dry dock in February for a more extensive repair.

So glad we went when we did.

A message from Eric

Hi everyone,

I normally post pictures and write a few words, but thought that a personal message from me using video would be a better choice. I wanted to let everyone know what was happening and how I am approaching my new reality.

This message is posted on YouTube, so there are two ways to get to it below. The link will likely open a new window if clicking the video below doesn't work.

Eric

https://youtu.be/I_jEniQV-LM

New job!

A very exhausting day today, and all of it good! No med appointments, no scans, no needles. I was at work all day, met with several people, then started my new position.

No, not a new 'job' - more of an enhancement of my current job. I had my first meeting as chair of the "Animal Research Ethics Board" at McMaster University. Although I was previously on this board for ~14 years, today I got to officially sit at the head of the table!

I am excited about this new opportunity to help contribute to the research process, not to mention the chance to exercise my remaining vocal cord.   ;-)