Getting to New Orleans and the stay there

Uncategorized Feb 14, 2020

 

We made arrangements for one of our young friends to watch the house, and she was nice enough to take us to the airport.  We flew out of Greensboro, NC to Atlanta and then to New Orleans on Delta.  We like Greensboro because the lines for the TSA checkpoint are never very long.  We were TSA pre-check for the outbound flight which makes the process even easier.  With the wheelchair, they had to swipe it to check for explosives.  Since my wife has numerous metal parts, she always sets off the alarm, and it only took a few seconds for the manual pat down and then we were off to the gate.  One thing I forgot to do was to notify the airline that we needed assistance.  Cheryl just walked the wheelchair down the ramp, and that worked without issue.
 

The flights went off without a hitch, and we were into New Orleans a little before noon on Wednesday.  We caught a taxi to the hotel, and I think the driver ripped us off...

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Our Winter Getaway on the Breakaway (part one)

Uncategorized Feb 11, 2020

 About us

My wife and I are both in our 60’s, and my wife has mobility challenges.  She has had her back fused, and several joints replaced.  So as a result, she uses a walker at home and is quite active, but when she has to travel longer distances, and when she may have to sit for extended periods, she then uses a wheelchair.  We are both outgoing and like to meet and talk to new people.

One thing to know about us is we are very much G or PG people.  We have no tolerance for vulgarity or sexual material.  This affects the choices of the shows we attend.  You will read more about our options in later posts.

This blog will address our travels and adventures.  While I will try to provide an abundance of information for those with mobility issues, I will also try to provide information for everyone. 

 

I would consider us as experienced cruisers, and I will share tips, things we learned, and mistakes we make so...

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Norwegian Jewel Day 2 Activities, Teppanyaki, and Hubbard Glacier

Uncategorized Dec 28, 2019
 

This was our first full day on the ship.  We all slept really well, I woke earlier than the rest and spent some time on the balcony just filming as we sailed along.  The weather was intermittently rainy but always cloudy.  This would be our day to explore the ship and participate in ship activities.  

When my wife and granddaughter woke up, we went down to the MDR for breakfast, there is something so pleasing in having a sit-down breakfast as the world is sliding by outside your window.  

Since we were at sea and it was raining outside, it was a day to participate in indoor activities.  My wife and granddaughter worked on a puzzle in the game room, and our first planned activity was the fruit carving demonstration in the Atrium.  There is video of the fruit carving on my YT page as well.

After this we again ate lunch in the MDR, the menu was similar to the previous days, and we chose it because we wanted to stay warm and...

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Norwegian Jewel Day 1 Standard Family Cabin and Balcony

Uncategorized Dec 26, 2019

After lunch, our cabins were available, so set off to set up the cabin. Fortunately most of our bags were there already.

The first issue to address was power, we had 3 phones, 3 tablets and 4 cameras that needed charging, and I also travel with a CPAP. So we brought a regular extension cord and this expansion cord.  It added three outlets and 3 USB connectors.

Then I ran the extension cord across the floor to my side of the bed, always the farthest away from the bathroom. Here is a picture of that.

You can see several things here, on the door of the bathroom, there is an over the door shoe organizer, and it is full already.  You can also see where I taped the extension cord to the floor.  I used Gaffer tape, which sticks well but doesn't leave a residue or damage the walls.  Pictures with links below.

Here is a picture of how we used more than one of the shoe organizers.

On the counter under the TV, you can see we already have the chargers in...

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Norwegian Jewel Day 1 Dining Options and Menus

Uncategorized Dec 25, 2019

The first thing we did once we boarded the Jewel was to drop the carry on bags off and head to lunch in the Azura main dining room (MDR).  NCL always has one MDR open on boarding day for lunch.    We love starting our cruise with a sit-down meal and not having to deal with the rush of people to the Garden Cafe which is also open.

Here are our choices:

                                            Scallops Gratin

                                                Greek Romaine Salad

                                                        Poached Atlantic Salmon

           ...

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Alaskan Railroad from Anchorage to Seward

Uncategorized Dec 24, 2019

Alaskan Railroad from Anchorage to Seward

We had to get up early and get started for the train; we left the hotel about 6:00 A, and there was already a line of people checking bags at the train station.  We got into the line with maybe a dozen people ahead of us, and it took about 15 minutes to get our bags checked.  One nice thing is that they check the bags to your hotel.  That allows you to take a tour when you get to Seward without having to worry about your luggage.

When we went into the terminal and were in line to get our tickets, we realized that we had left the small carry on with our passports in the taxi.  It was now about 15 minutes until the train left, and they were already boarding. 

It took a few minutes on hold to get through to the taxi dispatcher, and then another stressful 10 minutes for the taxi driver to get back with our passports.  We paid the driver a $20.00 fare...

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Raleigh to Anchorage

Uncategorized Dec 21, 2019
 
We spent the night in Raleigh at a Holiday Inn Express near the airport.  The room was less expensive than the cost of parking the car at the airport, and since we had a 7:30 flight, I wanted to be at the airport by 5:30 this was a very good choice.  They hadn’t started serving breakfast yet, but we were able to get a ride to the airport, and we cleared TSA quickly, and then we grabbed some airport food to hold us till we got on the plane. Since this was a non-stop flight, Delta served breakfast for all the passengers.

The flight was almost 6 hours long, but with free movies to watch and food to eat, it went very quickly.  I had booked this flight in Economy Comfort, and that worked well for my wife, who has mobility challenges and is not very flexible.  She had plenty of room for her legs to reasonably straight. I wound up in the middle seat, which is my least favorite, but I let my granddaughter sit by the window.

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What We Take on a Cruise

Uncategorized Dec 16, 2019

For The Cabin

We have four critical needs in our cabin.  I will review our reasons for each, and as in a lot of areas in life, not everyone will need or want these items, but for us, they are necessary.  

Gaffer Tape

We used to take duct tape, and there are huge discussions around the internet on what you can use duct tape for.  Some of them are way out in left field.  For traveling on a cruise ship, Gaffer Tape is a better solution than duct tape.  It can stick well, but doesn’t leave behind residue and doesn’t damage the finish.

My primary use for tape is to secure the extension cord or cords that we use.  In particular, I will use an extension cord for my CPAP.  In our cabin on the Jewel, my side of the bed wound up across the room from the available outlet.

I used the Gaffer Tape to secure the cord down the wall, and across the carpet to the bed.  Without the tape, the...

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Lunch after Embarkation

Uncategorized Dec 16, 2019
 

Lunch in Taste After Boarding

One thing that people often don’t know is that some of the main dining rooms are open at lunch on the first day.  On the Breakaway, both Taste and Savor open at 12:00 and serve lunch.  While everyone else was running for the Garden Cafe, my wife and I toured the ship and then when they opened, we went down for a nice quiet lunch.

I failed to get pictures of this menu, and the lunch menu does change slightly each day.  Some of the dishes, like the fish and chips, are standard while a few items are different.

 

My wife started with the grapefruit and pineapple salad.  The dish was good, the fruit ripe and served chilled.

 
 
 

I started out with a shrimp salad.  The shrimp were properly cooked.  I did think that the salad could have used a little more dressing.  That was a pattern that continued for...

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Welcome to Traveling With A Chair

Uncategorized Dec 16, 2019

Welcome to Traveling with a Chair

 
This blog will feature a variety of travel information.  My wife Cheryl, who travels with her wheelchair, and I are seasoned travelers with a love of cruising.  This blog will provide information for new cruisers, and those traveling with wheelchairs, as well as descriptions of our adventures.  I started this project because we were planning a cruise and there was a lack of information about accessibility on several ports as well as the on the ship.
 
I hope that you will find this information both interesting and helpful.  In addition to the blog, I will also be posting videos to my YouTube Channel, Traveling with a Chair.  You can expect frequent updates to start with as we just returned from a ten-day cruise, and are in the middle of planning a seven-day Alaska cruise.
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