Lame Travels: To DC and Back

In the summer of 2005, my family packed up our truck and traveled across the United States. On this trip, I came across obstacles that had to be overcome in order to make this vacation work. Despite the challenges, this three week adventure was one of my favorite family vacations. This amazing time was full of learning history through experience and making wonderful lifetime memories with my family.
Our journey started out here in Washington and we drove all the way to the east side of North Dakota before taking a break (not including going to the bathroom or getting gas). Our goal was to reach Grand Rapids, Minnesota, where my uncle lives, before stopping. However, my parents became tired and needed to rest. So, we found the first hotel that had an empty room available. We ended up staying in a Super 8, one which had no elevator and the empty room happened to be on the third floor. We ended up leaving my power wheelchair in back of the truck, as I was not able to take it up into our room. My dad carried me up the stairs and my mom brought my manual chair up so I could use it. The non-elevator obstacle was not the only unpleasant factor of our stay at this Super 8. These factors would be unpleasant for anyone who chose to stay in this particular Super 8. The room we stayed in was supposed to be a non-smoking room but it was obvious someone had smoked in both the room and bathroom before. The room reeked of cigarettes and the tub also had burn marks in the bottom. On top of the room smelling, the sheets were not clean. It is not pleasant to pull back the covers to find hair; not just one little hair but many! My mom had to get clean sheets and also cleaner to sanitize the toilet as it had also been used before and not cleaned. We survived and these events did make the beginning of the trip a little more entertaining.  
Before arriving at the Super 8, we drove through a spectacular thunderstorm. As a Western Washingtonian it is rare to witness such a spectacular storm as thunderstorms are few and far between and almost never like this one. On one side of the car, colorful bolts were cracking down to the ground and on the other side, flashes lit up the sky. I enjoyed the beautiful show as well as teasing my younger sister that we may run across a tornado. Well, this was fun until my sister fell asleep and left me awake, worrying about encountering a tornado. I guess my plan to freak out my sister backfired and to be honest, I deserved it.
The next morning, we got up and continued on our way to Grand Rapids. We spent a couple of days visiting my aunt, uncle and three cousins. We watched another amazing storm and got to see a bolt of lighting strike the ground about 50 feet from the house! We also found out that Grand Rapids did not have any Starbucks or any other coffee drive throughs for that mater (this is disappointing to a Western Washingtonian). We also wanted to utilize the land of a thousand lakes so, we decided to go swimming. The park that we ended up going to was not very handicap accessible. I remember having to go down a ways and then loop down into the road and come back. If a person is not able to use the stairs, they should not have to travel farther than an able bodied person to arrive at the same destination. Even though there were some disappointing aspects to this part of the trip, I really enjoyed my time in Minnesota. Little things like no coffee and unequal access should not be reasons to ruin a vacation. It was so great to be able to visit family that we don't see very often.

Our next stop was Wisconsin. We were headed to stay with our former pastor (from the church we went to when we lived in Alger, Washington) and his family. But first we made a pit stop in Green Bay; after all, we were in Wisconsin, so why not go to Lambeau Field? Even though a football game was not going on, it was still pretty awesome to experience such an amazing field. 

My sister and I outside of Lambeau Field

From Green Bay, we continued on to our pastor's house in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. I love Sheboygan, it is one of my favorite places that I have ever visited. Many of the houses were built in the 1800's and early 1900's and all seemed as if they were nicely kept up. Another factor that contributed to my liking toward the town is, when we went on walks, everyone smiled and said hi or even asked how our day was going. I did not know these people and they did not know me, but I felt welcome in this town. To anyone this would be a neat experience, but to me this was special. Here in my own town and even at my own school, it is rare that people who do not know me (or even some that do), acknowledge me. I really enjoyed my time in Wisconsin and hope that one day I will have the opportunity to go back.
From Wisconsin, we drove down through Illinois and across Indiana to get to Ohio. We camped at a KOA near Canton, Ohio. Here, my dad visited the Football Hall of Fame while my mom, sister and I played at the camp ground. Our stay was quite eventful as we got to experience Ohio weather first hand. Within about 15 minutes, rain clouds rolled in; rain poured down, then the clouds broke up and the downpour was over. During this time, my sister and I crawled into the tent, stacked all the mats and sleeping bags in the middle of the tent and listened to Mom as she tried to tie a tarp to trees above our tent. A mini stream started to form and roll right into our tent. Mom used our firewood as a dam to divert the water in a different direction. By the time she was finished with this task, the rain had stopped and she was soaked (a nice cool shower in the humid air was a relief to her).

My mom, sister and I outside our tent after the downpour

On top of this fun, the camp ground was filled with other things to do. We went swimming, utilized the game room and my sister rode horses. I really liked this camp ground, not only for the activities and weather but for the bathroom accessibility as well. There was a huge handicap accessible bathroom with a shower that had a seat as well as a toilet area that was large enough for my chair and my mom! Camping in Canton, Ohio is one of my favorite camping experiences.

My sister riding a horse at the KOA in Canton, Ohio

From Ohio, we went up to Pennsylvania to tour Gettysburg. We went to Little Round Top as well as other battle fields. We saw cannons and statues/sculptures that represent what took place at Gettysburg. We also saw the area where Abraham Lincoln gave the Gettysburg Address. I enjoyed getting to see where part of the Civil War took place. We took my manual chair around the battle sites as the bigger wheels maneuver across bumpy terrain better than my power chair (at that time). If I did not have someone to push me around, I would have used my power chair. One downfall of this trip occurred at Little Round Top. I was not able to get to the top and look over and down the hill. So, we made the best of it and my dad took pictures for me.

My mom, sister and I sitting in front of a sculpture of a Bible at Gettysburg

After Gettysburg our next destination was Washington DC. I loved DC, not only did I get to use my power chair the entire time, but the weather was hot and we got to see so many monuments and important places from our country's history. The Mall was spectacular, better than any picture could portray. Both the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial were larger than I had expected and it was such an awesome opportunity to see them in person. I loved getting to see the Vietnam Memorial as well, and getting to see the Capital and the White House was such an amazing experience! I really enjoyed the fact that I could go almost anywhere in my power chair. There were a couple of obstacles by the Capital, but nothing that could not be over come. 

    My mom, sister and I in front of the reflection pool

One memory that I have that scares me a bit occurred when we visited the Smithsonian. The security guard waved me around the metal detector and I was not patted down or checked at all. Yes, I am a blonde, fare skinned girl in a wheel chair but, that should not make me or anyone like me less innocent than anyone else. This was even after 9/11; a time when security was supposed to be heightened. Despite that, I enjoyed my time in the Smithsonian.

After touring DC, we went to Mt. Vernon to see where and how George Washington lived. This visit made him and his time seem more realistic. Even though my dad had to carry me, I loved going through Washington's house. Washington was a pretty creative man. I remember seeing a contraption that he had made. It was a fan that was powered by foot petals. He had it in his study situated by his desk. Like electricity powered appliances did not exist in the 1700's, people with disabilities really did not exist either. So, it makes sense that Washington's house is not accessible. There is that question that lingers around about if old monumental buildings should be modified or not. One side of the argument is yes, then everyone can enjoy historical places easier and the other side argues that modifying and updating monumental and historical places would take away from the authentic experience for everyone. As much as I would love to be able to go anywhere and tour independently, I do not want the history to be lost in bringing every place up to date. 

When we went to Williamsburg, I was impressed by those who had the job to reenact life as it was in the eighteenth century. The buildings had also been restored to look as they did in the 1700's. There was a pub that I remember in particular. I remember this pub for two reasons, one being a story I was told and also the accessibility, I could get into it. The story was that men coined the term gossip as men would go sipping at pubs and they would swap stories and talk about everything from their family lives to politics. I am not sure how accurate this is but I thought I would share it anyway. The really neat thing about this pub was it had a lift in the back. So, I could get into the pub without someone pulling my chair up the stairs and the historical look of the pub was able to be kept.  

After visiting Williamsburg, we traveled to Appomattox. At Appomattox, I remember a guy who also acted as if he lived in the past. He sat in a rocking chair on the porch of an old house and told of how Lee surrendered to Grant over yonder at the McLean house. He told of the battles that had surrounded the area as if they were fresh in his mind. I loved how realistic everything seemed. We visited the McLean house and saw the actual site of where the surrendering occurred. We also went inside the famous Appomattox Court House. During this part of the trip, I used my manual chair, as this made it possible for me to enter all the buildings. Every pace in Appomattox had stairs but if that was changed, it would take away from the historical significance of Appomattox.

My mom, sister and I in front of the McLean house

On our way home we stopped at the historical sites of Six Flags Kentucky Six Flags and Colorado. At both places we camped at a KOA. In Kentucky, the camping was pretty awesome as the weather decided to behave and I experienced a few firsts. Kentucky was where I rode my first roller coaster, had the pleasure to hear the power line buzz coming from bugs, witnessed the work of a raccoon first hand and played poker with Hershey chocolate squares in 90 degree weather. That first coaster ride gave me the love for speed, I do not have the desire to sleep outside in Kentucky thanks to the cicadas and the raccoon and my sister somehow won that messy game, yum!

Overall, I loved this family vacation. It sparked my desire to travel and learn more about history. It also opened my eyes toward that fact that I could travel just like anyone else even though I may have to do things a little differently. Stairs are the biggest barrier but if I have my manual chair, all I need is one or two people to carry my chair and me up the stairs. I really would like to be able to go anywhere independently, but when it comes to older and historical buildings, I understand why they are not accessible. 

However, there is a difference when it comes to newer buildings. I do not appreciate it when there are newer buildings that not handicap friendly or people try to make their building look accessible. 

I hope that some day I will have the opportunity to go back to Washington DC and the surrounding battlefields. Even though I enjoyed my time then, I think I would appreciate the experiences even more now that I am really interested in history and politics!