The plan was to leave in the morning and catch a train at midday. The problem which is something the rail assistance can't fathom is that without a crystal ball predicted journey start times are a best guess. Especially for my wife who has CRPS which may cause delays of up to 12 hours. Before we met I would always be over an hour early so I was never on the train the assistance expected me to be on.
People who need assistance are supposed to call 24 hours in advance and give them specific times. I understand why and all that but it's simply not possible.
What needs to happen is the platforms need to all be a specific height and all the trains need to have a wheelchair carriage also at a specific height and with access similar to how the buses in London have automatic ramps come out when you press the blue button. So then independent wheelchair users can remain dependent on technology rather than having to depend on other humans.
And the staff should not have such attitudes because you are late/early/unexpected. They are getting paid all the same. Sometimes I want to get involved in Politics to change things but that's not actually what politicians do. It's why they start for sure, apparently. As it happened on this trip the assistance was all good...
So we arrived to the first train station just after 6pm. The train we wanted was delayed so we had to wait a bit longer than we did anyway because we were 8 hours late and our tickets were only valid on off-peak trains. We waited then took a train to Southampton. We had to collapse my wife's chair because there was only space for one chair.
We arrived and had to get onto a train to Birmingham. My wife's chair was reconstituted and the assistance helped us off. Unfortunately we had missed the last train to Birmingham from this station. The rail assistant guys were super helpful though and found a way we could get there by 3am! We took a train to London Waterloo. Then a taxi to London Euston. Then we caught the last train to Birmingham with 2 minutes to spare.
The assistance guy was also helpful at Birmingham and helped us get a taxi. We got to the Premier Inn and the guys at reception where both really helpful. One of them took my wife to the 24 hour McDonalds because we hadn't eaten all day.
A couple hours of sleep later it was time to get ready to go for the early dinner at Bodega my wife had booked. We were running a little late so my wife had to call and let them know we wouldn't make our reservation. They were okay about it and we propelled ourselves there. It was close and all down hill so it didn't take us long. Unfortunately it is not a wheelchair accessible place but the staff were accommodating and carried me up the stairs. It's pretty unfortunate that all the interesting places are not wheelchair accessible. Only the same old chains, that are the same wherever you are, are.
bodega
This was a really great restaurant the South American food was amazing. If the previous few days had been less hectic my appetite would have allowed me to eat more. The pulled beef was delicious. We shared Beef Nachos for a starter and shared Tacos and a Burrito for the main.
After we ate we took a taxi to the O2 to see Placebo. The restaurant staff helped the taxi driver fit the wheelchairs in. The driver was a bit poor for a job where customer interaction matters. He said: "I hope you have someone who is going to help at the when we arrive." So is he just going to dump us out and leave our disassembled wheelchairs in a pile. We arrived when there was still a huge queue. Luckily there was a policeman right there to help the taxi driver and we went in.
 |
| The support act. TOY |
The restaurant at the hotel was closed when we got back which was a shame because they had a picture of a burger on the sign that looked amazing.
The next day we came back. We got home 7 hours after we left the hotel. A fun little break.
