Taylor Swift!

Kiki joined Mom, Don, Donna and George for a really special trip to Vancouver to see Taylor Swift in concert. 

First they had to drive to Vancouver. Kiki liked the seeing motorbikes on the highway as he didn’t see them last time he traveled this road at Christmas. Mom said motorbikes can’t drive safely on snow.  

  
Kiki was mesmerized by the tall stone bluffs on the drive. 

At one point Kiki took a cat nap with George in the back seat. We could hear them snoring together! Aren’t they cute?

 

Kiki picked our dinner stop: the Shark Club! He liked seeing the big sharks along the ceiling and was really thankful they were only pretend sharks. This flame shark was his favourite. 

 

We drove over a big bride and Kiki tried counting all the cables. There were too many for him to count. Do you see him counting out loud?

  
Kiki saw Science World in Vancouver. Do you remember visiting there last Christmas?

  

Kiki giggled when he saw this stack of flattened cars. 
 
Kiki was annoyed to see so much graffiti in Vancouver. He growled and said if he did that at home he would have to clean it up and get a time out.  

 

 

Golf

Kiki and mom drove to a golf course and Kiki whispered an idea into mom’s ear. Mom was a bit nervous, but she understood his logic that the cart was definitely more tiger-sized than her car, which he drives all the time. 

Here we see Kiki starting up the cart in the parking lot.

We couldn’t find a small enough club, so Kiki golfed by bumping the balls into he hole after Don got them close.   
Kiki drove all around the course. He especially liked zooming down the rolling hills. 

 
So close, Don! Kiki nosed this one in the hole for a bogey, which means one stroke above par. 

 

Kiki and mom smile at Kiki’s “lucky ball.” It was a fun morning!

Kamloops Fun

Kiki and mom had to get some work done before they could play. So Kiki helped mom do some bookkeeping and leaned how to file a PST return with the government. What a smart tiger!

 

His treat for a job well done was to go swimming!  He was sort of scared of the pool at first and made some sad whimpering sounds, but mom told him Eli gladly swims in this pool with a safety rope installed. Kiki said he needed time to get comfortable with the pool and that was fine by mom. 

 

We made friends with unexpected guests from the east coast who came to use the pool too. Kiki thought these boys reminded him of Eli and Ryan. 

 
Look at the moon Kiki saw later that evening. He was disappointed his picture didn’t depict how big the moon looked to his eyes. He thought the moon over Kamloops looked like the moon his ancestors would have enjoyed in Africa and Siberia. 

 

Eli Visits Campbell River

Eli’s paternal Grandma wanted to visit her old mother win Campbell River and asked Eli to come along for a week. 

Eli was not sure about it and was even nervous at times, but mom convinced him he would have a lot of fun. 

The two made a deal to call every day and each take a tiger buddy like before. Mom took Kiki and promised to take lots of amazing photos of their adventures together again. 

 

Leaving Las Vegas

All vacations come to an end and it was time to fly back home.  Koko saw a grownup game at the airport that made him laugh.  It was about beavers!

First he read the writing…

Then he laughed so hard!

As mom, Don and Koko flew up and up in the airplane, they saw the Wynn Hotel where they went swimming.  Isn’t it huge?  The big pools look tiny from way up high, don’t they?

Koko was really happy that the seats Don booked had lots of legroom (lots and lots of it).  It was the purr-fect place to have a baby tiger nap on the way home from a fun-filled trip.

More Vegas Fun

Mom and Koko spent three days hanging around Las Vegas and that was fun.

But one day Koko was surprised by Don showing up!  He and Koko hung out at the poolside at the Wynn Hotel and got some more rays.

And do you remember how Koko wanted to go in the giant ferris wheel?  Well, he finally got his wish!  He could see ALL of Las Vegas, near and far.  He was so excited about the ride he took very few pictures. He figures he will always remember, in his tiger mind, how beautiful the lights were.

Mom and Don really liked the ride too.  Koko took this picture of them. Mom wore that fancy dress she bought at Christmastime with Koko.  He thought she looked very pretty in it.  Don’t you agree?

The trio walked all around Las Vegas that night and saw the beautiful sights. This picture was taken just outside the Bellagio Hotel, where they have the most amazing water fountains playing sometimes.

Mom won money playing a Wheel of Fortune slot machine.  It’s a game only grownups can play because it takes a lot of maturity to play this game responsibly.  Koko just watched in amazement at how lucky mom was!

 

Nanna, Nanna, Nanna, Nanna… BATMAN!

Next Mom and Koko were walking in a hotel when suddenly they saw…

The Batmobile!

This car was a replica of the original, but still very cool!

It was only too bad Koko and Mom couldn’t take it for a spin down the Las Vegas strip!

Sparkles and Italy

Mom and Koko spent a lot of time walking together alone in the huge hotels and shopping malls of Las Vegas.  They took so many pictures it would be impossible to post all of them.  But here are a few highlights.

First, Mom saw tons and tons of sparkles and bling in Las Vegas.  She thought these gem-encrusted balls were pretty amusing.  Koko liked the mask and thought Eli would really like it.

Next mom went to a crystal store called Swarovsky to buy replacement earrings. Sadly she lost one of her special diamond earrings she bought herself a while back, so she decided to replace it with something just as sparkly but not as expensive.  This was a good place to find it!  Koko was sitting on the counter looking at more sparkles when this photo was taken.

Mom and Koko made friends with the sales lady at the Swarovsky store.

Next Mom and Koko went to a hotel that looks like it’s from Italy!  First they saw a replica of the Statue of David by Michelangelo.  Not the Teenage Mutant Turtle!  The famous sculptor and painter!

Mom and Koko were embarrassed at first…

Then they kept on looking and giggling!

The ceilings showed art that looks just like the paintings of Michelangelo too!  The real ones can be seen in Italy.

The outside of the hotel had neat bridges and canals just like Venice, Italy.

This is a neat panoramic of the canals in Venice.

Koko sort of wanted to go for a gondola ride but didn’t want to get too close to the water in case he might fall in! 

Paris, Nevada

Koko really liked the Paris Hotel in Las Vegas.  He had never been to the real Paris, like Mom, so he figured this was as close as it would get for him.

Here he is looking up at the Eiffel Tower .

Mom and Koko posed by the tower. Koko felt dizzy looking straight up at the tall, tall tower.

Then they went inside and were amazed to see it looks like you’re outside! Isn’t that a cool optical illusion?  It’s INSIDE a building during the day but looks like you’re outside on the streets of Paris at night.  Isnt’ that cool!

Koko liked the pretty chandeliers and tried to jump up to touch the crystals.

Mom and Koko posed by the huge crystal lights and took lots of pictures.  The hotel staff thought they were silly and giggled.

Then mom and Koko went up on the pool level and saw the tower again. Koko thought it was a really neat building and hopes he can build one someday out of lego or blocks with Eli.

Koko got a super awesome tan beside some loud German tourists. Mom ignored them by listening to music on her new iPhone and relaxing.  She explained to Koko that sometimes you just have to ignore loud noises by blocking them out with nice music.

Sightseeing in Las Vegas with a Tiger

Koko and Mom woke the next morning and went straight outside to see the flamingoes that make the Flamingo Hotel so famous.  Aren’t they cute?

Koko was amazed how many real and pretend Flamingoes there were!

Again Koko saw the HUGE ferris wheel and said, “We should go on that!”

Here is the casino part of the hotel.  This is where people bet money and hope to make lots more.  Usually people just lose lots of money.  Koko thought that was funny.

A really nice security guard named Hilton gave Mom and Koko a special tour of the pool area.  He was very friendly. Mom said he should get a job at the Hilton Hotel.

Mom and Koko walked around the city and under the giant Ferris Wheel!

Here is is from far away.  It is GIANT!  It is SO big it makes the hotels around it look puny.  And the palm trees look more like tiny weeds.

Koko asked Mom to take picture of this giant metal bull on the front of a building.

Kiki thought he saw real bunnies then realized they are just ladies in costumes. Sort of like how Eli sometimes dresses up like a tiger or Batman!