Exciting voyage falls in line with Jason’s passions
Ryan Rogers

Jason and care support worker Nisha Pandey recently went on an Alaskan cruise, and ever since they returned, Jason can’t stop talking about it.

In mid-May they embarked on a seven-day cruise along with Jason’s friend and aunt. It was an exciting voyage that fell in line with Jason’s passion for marine life and whale watching.

It was a major step up from his regular visits to the Vancouver Aquarium.

Care support worker Nisha Pandey and Jason, pictured on their Alaskan cruise.

The trip began in Juneau, Alaska, where they took a three-hour ferry ride to watch whales in the ocean.

“They take you right in the ocean where you see hundreds of whales,” says Nisha. She says they had to be on the alert because whales were breaching all the time.

“That was an exciting experience for Jason,” she says. “Some of the whales were very close to the boat we took and you could really see them.”

They also spotted sea lions, ducks and icebergs, along with beautiful scenery and other wildlife like bears.

Jason says it was a wonderful experience.

“I feel happy,” says Jason. “Great.”

Nisha says the sight-seeing and whale watching were learning experiences Jason would never have had, if not for the vacation, and it’s made him “so happy, jovial and full of life.”

The trip was especially rewarding because it gave Jason an opportunity spend quality time with his aunt in the evenings on the deck.

Nisha adds with a laugh that she and Jason have grown so close over their time together that people on the cruise mistook Jason for her son.

It’s a mistake she’s proud of, though, as she considers Jason a part of her family. Jason’s family shares that sentiment, as well.

“Every Christmas they send a card with gratitude,” says Nisha. “I’ve become a member of the family.”

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