On my recent family vacation to I experienced many firsts. This was the first time I traveled out of state via airplane since my injury 4 years ago. My family and I spent two amazing weeks enjoying the sights and taking advantage of many excursions in Ka’paa and Princeville in Kauai. My husband even surprised me with a wedding vow renewal ceremony our on the beach.
The first big adventure was of course just getting to Kauai. My fears of being able to get through the airport, board the plane and arrive on the other side with my walker intact was overwhelming. Yet, other than and extensive pat-down at the airport all went smoothly. I checked my walker at the door as I boarded and when I arrived in Kauai it was at the door waiting for me.
The next big adventure was the accommodations. Being handicapped takes a little extra planning, but also requires flexibility. Something that I lack from time to time. Neither shower, for example, had bars nor was there a shower chair. So, we had to improvise. We found an outside chair that was stable and made of material that could tolerate getting wet to use as a shower chair. Also, the shower was smaller so I could use the walls to get in and out without issues. The second issue was the bed was extra tall. Getting into bed was a challenge but was solved by finding a small step latter that I could use to step onto then get into the bed.
Another challenge was the grounds. Because we were at the beach I had to deal with uneven walkways, sand, dirt, grass with hills and planters as well as large rocks and tree roots. Thank goodness I had my special walker. It allows me to walk safely and easily in such areas.
It even allowed me to walk through the Cocao farm with large tree roots , rocks, mud, fallen fruit and uneven terrain during our Garden Island Garden Chocolate tour.
Despite the challenges it was was a great trip. I was able to do many excursions including the one depicted above. It was great tasting the varieties of chocolates, that were grown on the different islands, as well as learning how it is grown, picked, processed and all of it’s health benefits. During this trip I also got to go on an amazing ATV ride where we road out to the site where many movies like Jurassic Park and the Pirates’ of the Caribbean were filmed. We even road to a hidden water fall. It was fun, fast paced, and very comfortable. Our final family excursion was an unbelievable helicopter flight seeing amazing views that otherwise cannot be seen because the areas are unaccusable my foot or vehicle.
