It all started with.....

A Roadtrip!!......

This was my first experience of travel as an ‘independent’ adult or rather interdependent adult, spreading my wings outside of my parents care. Life is a web of relationships with people who provide support for each other. Most of my activities can only be completed with an immense amount of input from others, as well as a carload of equipment to help me stay comfortable and well. The expression of 'everything but the kitchen sink' definitely applies when I go away. My packing list usually include:

• Bathroom stuff

• BiPAP

• Mask and harness

• Tape, scissors and lipbalm

• Hoist

• Positioning supports

• Pillows

• Mattress and machine

• Commode

• Wheelchair charger

• Oxygen machine

• Oxygen hose
  

• Multiplug and double adapter

• Laptop

• Camera

This doesn’t count the other necessities that the average traveller carries around when they go roadtripping. But as my Mum always says you need to be prepared for all eventualities, and I believe that everyone has things they just can't do without and I just happen to take a few more.

I have a dream........

I am a sagittarian with a passion for travel. The only thing is I'm in a wheelchair and have very limited use of my arms and legs. But that does not stop my dreams of wanting to travel the world, particularly to the UK and France. My ambition is to make a documentary film about travelling as a person with a serious disability, to show the world that anything is possible with the right attitudes and support.

Where I live (New Zealand) there is not much if any widely available knowledge about travel options for people with disabilities, so I hope that this journey will be helpful for others. I plan to share my journey via blogspot and other media/web sources (yet to be determined) so that others can benefit from the information.

At the moment a bunch of friends and I are brainstorming and gathering ideas of how to make this trip happen. We are gathering ideas together about ideas to raise funds, who to contact about information and services we might need and lots of other things. Planning and researching is so exciting but I can't wait till we can get some of these things underway.

If anyone has some positive suggestion of fundraising or information source ideas, or even just suggestions of good places to go and visit that would be awesome.