Illinois Tourism & Travel

Crazy About Travel

Meet the Canadian family taking a world tour before the children lose their sight

Meet the Canadian family taking a world tour before the children lose their sight

Right after a devastating prognosis, this family members is having the trip of a life span.

3 of Sebastien Pelletier and Edith Lemay’s 4 small children have a unusual genetically inherited ailment identified as retinitis pigmentosa.

It potential customers to a gradual degeneration of the retina, the light-delicate tissue at the again of the eye. Individuals with the problem steadily eliminate their sight and the pace of their eyesight decline can change drastically.

So Sebastian and Edith have embarked on a family adventure to see and encounter the wonders of the environment just before it is far too late.

Why did the household come to a decision to travel close to the entire world?

Mia, now 13, was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa at the age of three following her mother and father observed how clumsy she was, especially at night time. 7-calendar year-previous Colin and 5-calendar year-aged Laurent have been also afterwards identified with the problem. Only Leo, their next eldest kid, is unaffected.

“It’s type of a blow, where you just cannot feel it. Then you try out to say ‘this just can’t be going on to us’ then you get mad, etcetera,” states Sebastien.

“So, it is a full process of striving to get around anything that is undesirable and try out to transform it into anything that is not always greater but is standard and is aspect of everyday living.”

After a professional suggested they support prepare the youngsters by exhibiting them photos of locations, animals and landscapes, the relatives determined to do one particular superior.

“I made the decision that, Ok, I’m not heading to show her elephants and giraffes in publications, I’m going to go show her in authentic life… and fill their memory with as substantially lovely matters as we could,” Edith describes.

And so began their spherical-the-earth vacation.

Setting up reminiscences that will previous a life span

Sebastien and Edith selected the locations but the children also got a say in the setting up.

“We did a bucket-list of actions they desired to do on the trip, so we had horseback using we had discovering to surf sleeping on a train. Laurent really preferred to drink juice on a camel for some odd motive. We considered it was definitely amusing. He was four at the time but he was adamant – ‘I want to drink juice on a camel,’” suggests Edith.

They set out a yr in the past and have so significantly been to 10 international locations. Most just lately they went to Bangkok, Thailand, where by they frequented historical cultural web pages and glittering riverside temples. Next on the record is Nepal.

Quickly the kids will return to regular schooling in Canada soon after nearly a yr of vacation. The sights and appears of their trip will grow to be reminiscences but types their moms and dads hope will last a life time.

View the movie above to see the relatives travel all-around the entire world.