Month: January 2024

Let’s talk airport special assistance…Blog #132

I love writing about travel experiences — so many wonderfully amazing places in this world to visit. I’ve waxed eloquent (hopefully) about such magnificent places as the Acropolis in Athens, the Eiffel Tower in Paris, or Skookumchuk Narrows in British Collumbia’s Sunshine Coast. And what can match the mystery of the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, or the wondrous display of a Creators sense of humour as schools of angelfish decided my freckles were bits of food just waiting for their tiny beaks to feed on me while snorkelling! Do you know how hard it is to laugh while wearing goggles — and how could I not?

What I have never written about are the journeys taken to get to these amazing places, and the hours spent in airports. Who hasn’t experienced the mad rush to make it to the gate before it closes, or endured hours sitting on hard benches while your flight has been delayed yet again. Or what about the seemingly miles of unending halls to navigate, and security that is compelled to aggressively dig through the carefully packed contents of your carryon luggage?  (I know…it’s for our own safety)

Sculpture ~ Vancouver, BC International Airport

On our recent trip to Europe, my husband and I had the joy of spending time in no less than four airports, each way. At times the layovers were of a short duration, other times we had several hours to fill before boarding yet another plane.

We have travelled a great deal and feel very blessed to have done so, and mostly without incident. However, life changed greatly three years ago when my husband was diagnosed with a serious medical condition. We still wanted to travel, but the simple task of getting from one gate to the next very quickly became an insurmountable task…or so we thought.

On this trip, our amazing travel agent at Flight Centre added a request on my hubby’s ticket…’wheelchair required’. It was a game changer. At each airport, a trained and ever so gracious ‘assistant’ was waiting to take him from point A to point B with both speed and efficiency. Who knew there were so many back halls and corridors available to those with the necessary security clearance. The added bonus? We got to bypass all the lineups for security and passport control…it was amazing! 

Have you ever tried to keep up with a wheelchair pushed by a licensed wheelchair operator while lugging two four-wheeled suitcases? (I’m sure they must take some kind of wheelchair driving course to move that fast) It’s not for the faint of heart, believe me. I achieved a week’s worth of exercise just trying to keep up. When time allowed, and it generally did, they would leave my husband (and me as the tag along) in one of the airport lounges available through my credit card, then magically show up just in time to get us to the next gate ready for pre-boarding.

In all seriousness, these amazing humans deserve more than they are probably paid and have earned our undying admiration for life. In leadership we talk about ‘servant leadership’, what we witnessed was such a lovely example of customer service servanthood. 

Travel will never be as effortless for us as it was in the past, but having access to such assistance made all the difference in the world. There are many more amazing places in this world we want to visit — these airport angels are now an important element in making this possible.

Trip Saavy | Wheelchair and Guided Assistance | Arranging special assistance UK | Canadian Affair | Travelling with disabilities

                                                                                                    

‘Thank you’ Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya on Pexels.com

An Algarve morning walk…Blog 131

There is something beautiful about setting out first thing in the morning for a walk when traveling to far (and near) places, especially when the surroundings are nothing short of breathtaking.

For this blog I thought I would take you on a such a walk. The thing to remember when visiting some of these incredibly beautiful places in the Algarve, is that walking can at times more resemble climbing…so many hills! But, with every up and down comes a spectacular feast for the eyes!

On this particular morning, I walked down from where we were staying, along the narrow roads (yes, this was actually a road to access homes), and from between the buildings was treated to this view over the town of Carvoeiro, providing a glimpse of where my walk would be taking me.

Some of the homes, like this one, presented such character against the picturesque background. After the uphill, came the expected downhill. Something else to keep in mind, at this time of year there is quite a bit of dew overnight, so the cobbled surfaces can get a bit slippery…proper walking shoes are a must! This street wasn’t so bad, but on others the stones are so smooth and shiny from years of wear, a bit of moisture can make the walk as slippery as the black ice we encounter in Canada. All part of the unique experience of a morning walk.

Once I arrive in the heart of the town, I am met with this beautiful example of the Algarve’s glory. The beaches found in this part of Portugal are among the most lovely I have visited in all my travels. The combination of ocean, cliffs, rocks, and sandy beaches all add to the splendour boasted by the natural beauty — truly breathtaking. But why use words when pictures can say so much more…

Pulling myself away from the beach I continue my walk, up another narrow road that provides a spectacular view of the vastness of the ocean before me. Let me remind you friends, these pictures are all from one beach, one morning walk, one experience out of many!

Before heading back to our accommodations, there’s always time for a coffee on the beach, espresso of course (albeit decaf!). As I walk back up the hill I take a moment to pause, turn around, and once again take in the view…and gasp for air to make it up the rest of the steep incline 🙂

These two snaps are taken from the deck of our VRBO…great location to read, if you can pull your eyes away from the view, so distracting.

As we head home from this trip, our hearts are full after precious time spent in this splendour, and more importantly, with our family. Many more wonderful memories created.

2024 ~ ready for new adventures…Blog 130

I love to travel, really I do. However, this love is not without conditions. I most enjoy travelling with someone, preferably family and close friends, and I like going places that offer the opportunity to be by the sea or ocean. While I appreciate time spent in a city exploring the arts, culture, gastronomy and of course unique shopping, I prefer to spend my time in the less busy, less travelled parts of the world. To be clear, I’m not talking about roughing it, I do appreciate my creature comforts, just more so in peaceful, slower paced locations. 

There are, of course, some things about travel that I find less enjoyable. Like long haul flights that leave you longing for that invigorating walk on the beach where stretching without fear of elbowing another passenger, or flight attendant, is possible. Or how about the challenge of visiting the aeroplane bathrooms? It takes some contorting to rearrange every single thing around you, climb over a sleeping seat mate, and then wait for your turn to once again be a contortionist to fit into the smallest closet size space to relieve yourself. And then you get to do it all in reverse. 

Then there’s the jet lag — oh my! I’ve heard many tips and tricks to deal with it, and some even claim to prevent it; however, the reality is that jet lag is part and parcel of travelling to those amazing, yet to be discovered far off places that call for navigating across various time zones. Great argument there for local travel and road trips!

But still, I love to travel and explore new places, shop in local markets, enjoy local cuisine (except fish, unfortunately), and find those spots that offer moments of quiet and reflection by the water.  

We are starting the year off with a wonderful travel experience, not to new places, but to someplace more familiar. As many readers know, we spent 7 months travelling and living in Portugal and Spain in 2021/2022. To celebrate my departure from full time employment to freelancing (Professional Development Coaching), we are taking advantage of creating our own time schedule. 

Carvoeiro, Portugal is one of the places that won our hearts during our extended time in the EU, so it is serving as our home base for a short time while we enjoy this incredibly beautiful part of the world. But even more fantastic is the time we have to enjoy being with both our kids and their children. This time together isn’t something we take lightly — living in different parts of the world has its challenges! It is simply heartwarming and life-giving to spend time on spectacular beaches with your family. The perfect way to kick off a new year.

So, as we look to the year ahead, what does travel look like for 2024? Perhaps back to Europe, perhaps travel in Canada, perhaps…who knows? What I am sure of, is it will be filled with adventure, exploration, learning, and delight! And more inspirational places to write and create. Stay tuned.

Leave home, leave the country, leave the familiar.
Only then can routine experience—buying bread, eating vegetables, even saying hello—become new all over again.

—Anthony Doerr