Posts tagged travel tales
Transitions: Better Lives for Disabled People
Alex Galvez.
TO MARK THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES, WE PRESENT AN INSPIRING STORY FROM CENTRAL AMERICA
It could be the worst place in the world to live if you’re disabled.
In the Central American nation of Guatemala, many disabled people – who make up some 14% of the population – live isolated lives hidden away from public view. Most disabled children in Guatemala don’t attend school; fewer than 2% of disabled adults are in work, and there is almost no support available. Only a tiny minority of paraplegics have wheelchairs, the rest relying on being carried by family members. Given the additional costs of living with a disability, and it’s no surprise that disabled Guatemalans are often among the poorest in their communities.
Thousands of people have been left with disabling injuries after a civil war which lasted more than 30 years. The country has the second-highest rate of gun crime shootings in the world, after Columbia. Toxins associated with corn tortillas, the Guatemalan staple, have been linked to a high incidence of birth defects such as Spina Bifida. (more…)
Sci-tech:Disabled Explorers In the World’s Most Badass Short Bus
Lance Blair was 18 when a truck blew a red light and removed his lower leg. “There was about a pinky-width of meat holding it on.” So Lance did the obvious thing: He built a diesel-powered wheelchair-accessible 4×4 adventure truck.
Granted, it took Lance a couple of decades to put together the “Wheelchair Accessible Van for Expeditions”—the “WAVE.” After his motorcycle accident in 1988 he wasn’t sure he’d even walk again.
Travel Tales: Kayaking the Canyon
The Grand Canyon is one of Northern America’s most breath-taking natural attractions, but it’s physical challenges proved to be a crucial challenge for one recently disabled man .
From the corner of our camp he shouts at me: “Karen do you have any paper towel?”
I’m on cooking duty, slicing red onions. I glance in his direction.
“Well? Have you?” He speaks aggressively; I sense frustration in his voice.
“The kitchen’s run out,” I reply, “but I have a pack of moist tissues in my dry bag. Will that do?”
He doesn’t look up. He’s too absorbed, bent right over. His kayak lies abandoned at his feet. “Er, shall I get you one?” I ask tentatively.
“Yeah,” he says. “Just get it now. Anything to stem the blood.” (more…)
Travel Tales: Sunrise Over The African Bush
Given the current global financial climate – with everybodyworried about recession, cutbacks and redundancies – is even thinking about spendingmoney on a South African safari a sensible idea? (more…)
Travel Tales: The Cold Comforts of Sweden
Focusing on the lemon yellow and golden hues stretching ahead of him, Keith Jansz sketches busily away. The stunning scenery and spectacular light in the far north of Sweden would be enticing for any artist but, for Keith, being able to capture such grandeur marks an enormous personal milestone.
Forty six-year-old Keith has travelled to Åre, Sweden, with the Back-Up Trust as part of a group of skiers with spinal cord injury. Previously an active skier and snowboarder, Keith thought he would never take to the slopes again when – just months after completing the 1995 London Marathon – he was paralysed from the shoulders down following a car accident. After seven months in the spinal unit at Stoke Mandeville Hospital, Keith returned home to the painful process of adapting to his new situation. Looking back to the despair he felt then about his future, Keith is justifiably elated at his achievements in Sweden, both on and off the slopes. (more…)
Travel Tales: Accessible Berlin
Berlin is a fascinating city and a monument of living history. It is home to over 3 million people and is the vibrant and beautiful capital of Germany. There was plenty to see – from graffiti covered remnants of the Berlin Wall, which came down in1989, to the newly renovated Reichstag. (more…)
