Ever since my sister took part in her first foreign language exchange with the school, I've been extremely excited about the prospect of this new adventure, but at the same time, always had that one burning question in the back of my mind - how on Earth are we going to pull this one off?! Luckily for me, I'm surrounded by a team of open-minded, supportive and enthusiastic people that live by the belief that anything is possible.
Just before Christmas, preparations began in order to be ready for a week's trip away this march as, as many of you may know, there is A LOT that needs to be done. For instance, the airline likes to know every little detail (voltage, battery type etc.) about every piece of medical equipment that one wishes to take on the flight, and for me, this is a fair few. My Dad is now a pro at sorting out our travel arrangements, so along with my German teachers, they battled their way through the paper work and ensured that everything was exactly as it should be.
My power-chair is obviously a huge part of my life, and so naturally, having it with me wherever I go is a must. Unfortunately, things do get a tad more complicated when you throw a plane journey into the mix. Due to my £20,000 chair having such sensitive light-touch controls so that I'm able to operate it, it's also extremely fragile, and so handing it over to a couple of men in high-viz jackets at the airport and then having to trust that it will be brought to you at the other end of your journey in a usable condition is quite a big deal. As there doesn't seem to be any real procedure for transporting electric wheelchairs by plane (such as a big box for it to go in or something), we have now devised a method of removing all parts of the chair that are the most fragile; placing them inside the chair as neatly as we can; and then wrapping the chair in cellophane within an inch of its life. Some people ask me whether I think that it's worth the risk of taking my chair away and it getting damaged. Why not just use my manual chair? But to me, that would be like saying, "Yeah! You can go on holiday! But there's just a small catch - you can't take your legs. Oh, and come to think of it, your arms will have to stay behind as well"
Part and parcel of it all!
Usually we can get away with leaving the pole that operates my arm supports attached as it's reasonably sturdy, but this time, we were travelling to Germany on the world's smallest plane, which consequently had the world's smallest hold. For a moment, it was looking unlikely that I'd be able to fly at all, but as long as we made the chair as small as humanly possible, including removing the pole and the headrest, so that it would fit through the door to the hold with millimetres to spare. Phew!My Dad is usually the one that takes charge of all things mechanical/chair related in the Griffiths' household, but for this particular jolly, he had to stay at home with the B&B, leaving us on our own to dismantle and reassemble my chair. Although uber-stressful at times, it was good practice for my Mum and I, as we're hopefully going to be taking a trip to LA together at some point to check out the prospective universities. Exciting times ahead!
Another huge bonus for us on this trip was that, because all other teaching assistants were otherwise engaged with family commitments etc., my sister Candice was able to come along to assist Mum and be that all important second pair of hands. It's also pretty handy that she's practically fluent in German, and so, not only was it a great experience for her, she could help me out when I really was stuck too!
Everything worked out just as planned for the journey there, and we arrived late on the Monday night feeling very relieved. As the chances of finding a family in Germany with a fully-accessible house(including suitable bathroom facilities and so on) to partner me with were relatively slim, it was decided that the best option would be to find some accommodation within the town with everything that we needed. By some miracle, and dedication and determination by my German partners, in the very centre, they found an accessible flat that was fully equipped, even with a shower chair/commode! I think it may have been part of some purpose-built retirement accommodation, but hey - if it works! It was perfect for the three of us, and just a minute's walk from my partners' houses and their school. As it turned out, I was given two exchange partners as it meant that even more people could take part in this fantastic opportunity.
German Exchange 2015
Wilkommen in Waldorf!
The families of Vanessa and Anne were so lovely, but admitted that, before I arrived, they had absolutely no idea what to expect. Even though we weren't staying in their houses, after they'd seen what was needed, they even went to the trouble of building a ramp so that I could enter one of the houses that had three massive stone steps! The other house amazingly already had an ideal ramp leading straight up to the front door. As the week went on, they quickly got to know what worked well, and planned some really great things for us to do. I honestly don't think I could have asked for better partners - and now life-long friends.
Friends for life
A visit to Stuttgart
Transport to and from the different cities was so easy, with every single bus being wheelchair accessible. Unfortunately, just like England, you still have to pre-book if you're a wheelchair user and want to travel by train, and so not having this little piece of information did cause a tiny bit of chaos, but nothing we couldn't handle.
Awwww:')
A visit to Heidelberg
The whole week was a huge success, and we are so thankful to everyone involved in making what seemed like such an impossible mission a reality. Apart from a small amount of confusion over my chair at Stuttgart airport, (Candice's command of German played a key part in convincing the airport staff not to throw my chair on its side and put it through an x-ray machine)! the journey back ran smoothly. Coach travel is yet another challenge as I need a high-lift ramp and there is an extra £40 charge for this and there are not many companies that have such adapted coaches. However, we have found Warrington's in our local area and they are brilliant and cover all our coach journeys now. We arrived back in Birmingham in the early hours of the morning and hopped straight on our coach that our favourite driver Bev had managed to park right outside the terminal, and headed back to sunny Staffordshire - wunderbar!
As soon as we stepped foot - or wheel - inside our house, it was time to commence 'Operation Punta Cana', and time to frantically prepare for our holiday to the Caribbean, which was now only two days away. It's a shame really that I need my machines everyday because we could have just left them all packed, but no, it all had to come out, only to go back in the following day. We swapped our boots for bikinis, and scarfs for sunglasses, and made sure that we could squash in a few minutes for all the really important jobs - you know, eyebrows, eyelashes and nails. It probably wasn't the ideal scenario having two big holidays in such close proximity, but we still made it to Manchester airport by the Wednesday, unbelievably excited for our two week holiday in the Dominican Republic!
Towards the end of 2013, I was having one of my usual chest infections, and began to fantasize about a holiday in a Caribbean paradise, with white sand, blue sky, palm trees, and a turquoise sea. As I was recovering, I thought I might just do a little bit of research to see what was possible, and hey presto, six months later we were there! Obviously, a fair bit more planning went into it than that, but to cut a long story short, we ended up on the most perfect resort, with the most perfect people, where every item on my tick-list was checked. It was that perfect in fact, that within a week of returning, we had booked up exactly the same holiday for this year!
We nearly always travel to the airport the night before and stay in the hotel there, as it just saves a lot of hassle and stress on the morning of the flight, and this time was no exception. We always take my manual wheelchair along as well, just in case there's a problem with my electric one, and it also means that I can access the beach - compulsory of course! It also doubles up quite well as a trolley for the bags around the airport....
The aeroplane seats aren't the most comfortable for me to sit in for nine hours, as the have next to no support, but as long as none of my family minded me stealing ALL their blankets and pillows, we got by alright I'd say.
Sisters on tour!
When we arrived at Punta Cana airport last year, they tried to tell us that my electric chair hadn't actually been put on the plane and was still sat in Manchester. "Don't worry," they said, "it'll be with you in a few days." WHAAATTT?!?!?! Thankfully, they just hadn't seen it in the hold (you know, as it's so small and non-zebra print and everything), and it was brought to us at the hotel just a few hours later. As you can imagine, those were a tense few hours.
After this little charade last year, it was a huge relief to arrive and have my chair delivered straight to me - even if they did throw it onto the luggage belt on its side! By some miracle, and thanks of course to my Dad's expert cling-film-packing-trick, it survived the blow, and we were in the accessible taxi and on our merry way in no time at all.
It does look like some sort of medieval torture implement, but I assure you
it's really just an 'aisle chair' for the aeroplane to help me get to my seat.
Who'd have thought we'd find a wheelchair-accessible taxi in
the Dominican Republic!
It's always a worry going back to a place that was so perfect for a second time, as you have no idea whether it'll live up to your first visit. There was absolutely no need for concern - this trip may have even topped the first!
I honestly don't think I can find the words to describe how amazing this holiday truly was. If I said I enjoyed it, that wouldn't even come close to how I felt. The second we arrived, the party began, and we didn't stop until we were sat on the plane travelling home. Every day was spent either by the pool or on the beach; joining in beach games and doing the pool aerobics, and every night was spent dancing under the stars and being thrown out of the nightclub... Yeah, you read right. The one thing I didn't expect to happen to me during the two weeks was to be flung out of the disco, but before you ask, it was only for not exactly being the right age and having snuck in there... oops! It's gotta' be done at some stage I suppose....
Pool-side in paradise....
Dancing the night away....
One of the highlights of my time there has to be the pool/foam party. If you imagine one of those typical American pool parties that you see on TV with music and dancing and a swim-up bar and a foam machine and glitter, that was it. When I saw what it was like (pretty crazy to say the least), I decided that I would just stand back and watch, as I can't really be independent in the water when it's like that, and I honestly didn't mind having a good old look at what everyone was getting up to. My Mum was more than happy to take me in, but I gratefully refused and sat at the poolside. This wasn't good enough for the hotel's entertainment staff. The main reason we returned to this exact resort was for the people - the Animation Team in particular are some of the most amazing people you will ever meet, and we now feel as if they're part of our family in the Dominican Republic. To them, me sitting on the side-lines simply wasn't an option, and so I was lifted straight of my chair by one of them, lowered down over a barrier, and into the arms of another young, muscly Dominican guy - sounds awful, doesn't it? I sat on the wall of the pool next to Mum, and she clung on to me for dear life while we partied away.
High School Musical is the first thing that springs to mind
Hanging on in there....
But no, that still wasn't good enough. Within minutes, one of the Animation Team came bouncing over with an airbed for me try, and so that's exactly what I did. As you can imagine, it wasn't really the easiest thing, so in the end, I ended up in the pool, smack-bang in the centre of the party. And to think I wanted to just watch! .
I personally believed that it was bordering on illegal to leave the Caribbean without having been on a boat trip, so with that in mind, we booked a trip that left straight from the beach with no 3 hour (no-accessible) coach trip involved. We did the exact same trip last year, but it was so magical that we just had to do it again. The first question is obviously, how am I actually going to get on board this boat which is half way out to sea? This is where the manual chair comes in as, as much as I'm all for talking my electric chair everywhere with me, carrying it over the waves might be just a little step too far. I was, once again, carried over the waves and lifted aboard by the welcoming crew.
Just another day in paradise
A picture from last year, but you get the idea.... pretty cool huh?
My portable cough assist also came in particularly handy on this day, as my chest had filled up with secretions, and without it, I might well have had to stay on dry land (next to a plug socket).
Such an essential - and now well travelled - piece of equipment
As well as snorkelling and a visit to see the sharks, the boat trip also took us to a picturesque lagoon where we could swim amongst the starfish in the natural swimming pool. It's in a particular part of the island that has not yet been built on, and so is stunningly peaceful and serene - basically, it's paradise. In order to get down into the water from the boat, I had to be lowered down over the side by the guys crewing the boat in something called an Emergency Transfer Sling. For those who have never seen anything like this, it's a sort of seat, but made out of fabric (with lots of support), and has handles for lifting around the edge. It's so easy to use with two people carrying, and makes those lifts that would otherwise be impossible, possible. It's also really comfy for me, therefore considerably reducing any risk of injury not only to the people lifting, but it's probably a fair bit safer for me too. Once in the water, my Mum holds onto me so that I can be upright and see what's going on.
Mi familia;<3
The 'Emergency Transfer Sling' in action
The great thing about going on holiday is that it gives you the opportunity to experience new things, for instance, beach parties with music and people painted with glitter from head to toe - you don't see many of those in Staffordshire now do you! Once again, I was carried over the sand in my manual chair by the animation team, and parked at the side of the dance floor with a perfect view of what's going on.
Okay, so maybe on this occasion, sitting on the side-lines
wasn't all that bad....
As you may have guessed, I don't get to stay there for very long....
As soon as the music started, I was picked up in my chair and I literally flew into the centre of the dance floor, where I stayed for the duration of the night. Without my electric chair, I not exactly able to move any parts of my body to dance - I don't even have my arm supports to help me lift my arms. Instead, I have to rely on passing Canadians to help me throw some shapes.
My replacement arm supports - do you think they'll do?
The second beach party (the following week) actually happened to be our last night, so naturally, we didn't hold back. The same process of being carried onto the beach by young, fit Dominican guys was repeated - it's a hard life, I know - but after a short while of just dancing down on the sand, we had to take it up a notch. I'd seen people up dancing on the podium before, but I'd never thought for one second that that would be me. I was lifted in my manual chair up on to the mini-stage at the front of the beach, and partied the rest of the night away just there - it was hard to believe that I wasn't dreaming!
As I said earlier, the main reason that we returned to this wonderful place - apart from the stunning scenery and gorgeous weather, which is a bonus - was because of the fantastic people that we met whilst there. Not only are the staff so positive and energetic 24/7, but they're also so open to the idea of me and my chair. Before we arrived, many of them had never even seen a power-chair like mine, and were, like all of us, blown away by it. There was never once any hesitation as to how to approach me, or even any fear that I might break if they even glanced in my direction - never mind if they lifted me straight out of my chair and up in the air (which did happen on a number of occasions)! They embraced our whole family as part of their own, and that - alongside a refreshing belief that anything is possible with a bit of teamwork - is really what makes this holiday so special.
Our special meal with the Animation Team
I don't know what it is about holidays, but during that two weeks, I was asked more times about 'what had happened to me' than I have been in my whole life put together. Some people would describe this as atrociously rude and obscenely insensitive, but I think it's great! There's so often this notion that when talking to a wheelchair user, one must never state the obvious, but I don't see the harm is in being interested (obviously this is only my opinion and others may feel differently)? Whether it was the Caribbean air or just the rum punch, having everyone feel that they could approach me and speak so openly about my chair etc. was so uplifting, and I often found that they had their own story to tell as well. The irony is that, the more my chair/disability was spoken about and acknowledged, the less visible it became.
Just one of the many fantastic people we met during
our time at Ocean Blue and Sand
¡Hasta luego Punta Cana! See you next time;xox
Now that we're back to reality and slowly descending from cloud 9, I should be able to blog again in the very near future about a number of very exciting things, including our Meet and Greet with The Vamps!
Write soon,
Tilly,xox
