Okay, this was only my second cruise, but the accessibility level was just about equal to my previous trip on the Norwegian Jewel, so I'm starting to suspect that they're all pretty similar. Again, the stateroom was so small that I was able to walk around without a walker by grabbing onto furniture, which gave me a little "intimations of normality" thrill. We did not ask for a handicapped accessible room, but I understand that they are bigger, which, ironically, would have made things more difficult for me. All showers have grab bars, and so do the public restrooms, handicapped and non-handicapped, which are located all throughout the ship. As far as disembarkation to ports, which was a problem on my last cruise, I did not even try getting on the tender to their private island, which they said was accessible only for handicapped passengers who could get up out of their wheelchairs; after my frightening experience being borne above the stairway on the Norwegian Jewel. They assured us that there wouldn't be a problem with accessibility at the ports where the ship could dock, but I don't know, their ramp had a series of speed bumps, I guess to prevent runaway wheelchairs from careering down. It worked pretty well on the way down, but on the return trip, wouldn't you know it, the cruise employees pretty much had to lift me and my wheelchair to get me up the ramp. Which was, again, scary and also their grunting was a blow to my ego, but it's their own fault for feeding me so much delicious food and then trying to hoist me up.
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Norwegian Cruise Line, Norwegian Jewel
In general, cruising is a great choice for handicapped travelers. Everything on the ship is uber-accessible, all the showers have grab bars and there are clean handicapped-accessible bathrooms everywhere. On the first day, before you leave port, they have what they call a "fire drill" where all passengers have to report to a certain spot, and I'm pretty sure it's just so staff can keep track of who would need special assistance in an emergency if the elevators stopped working, which is reassuring. If you are unable to transfer out of a wheelchair and walk a few steps you can get a handicapped-accessible stateroom, but I found the regular stateroom even better, because it was so small, there was always something to hold onto.
My trip on the Norwegian Jewel was my first cruise, and I was not brave enough to try the land excursions (although I did get off the ship and look around the ports), but they give you a list of which ones are possible for handicapped travelers. Be careful about what they consider "possible," though. At one port (Belize, I think), passengers had to take a tender (a much smaller passenger ship) between the cruise ship and land. When we asked about accessibility, staff said there were stairs between the ship and the tender, but promised in a vague way that they would "help me" get down them. Turns out what they meant was that two crew members lifted the wheelchair with me in it, a la a Jewish wedding but maybe not quite so high, and with much grunting and puffing, carried me down the stairs. If I had known what they meant by "help," I think I would have just skipped it, because it was very scary, plus an ego buster to be loaded onto a ship like heavy cargo. But, I survived and lived to tell about it. And, the main thing, I ate three gourmet meals a day and spent the winter solstice soaking up the Caribbean sun, which is the beautiful thing about a cruise vacation.
My trip on the Norwegian Jewel was my first cruise, and I was not brave enough to try the land excursions (although I did get off the ship and look around the ports), but they give you a list of which ones are possible for handicapped travelers. Be careful about what they consider "possible," though. At one port (Belize, I think), passengers had to take a tender (a much smaller passenger ship) between the cruise ship and land. When we asked about accessibility, staff said there were stairs between the ship and the tender, but promised in a vague way that they would "help me" get down them. Turns out what they meant was that two crew members lifted the wheelchair with me in it, a la a Jewish wedding but maybe not quite so high, and with much grunting and puffing, carried me down the stairs. If I had known what they meant by "help," I think I would have just skipped it, because it was very scary, plus an ego buster to be loaded onto a ship like heavy cargo. But, I survived and lived to tell about it. And, the main thing, I ate three gourmet meals a day and spent the winter solstice soaking up the Caribbean sun, which is the beautiful thing about a cruise vacation.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Mee Noodle Shop, 795 9th Avenue (SW corner of 53rd), New York City
Picture this: a family of four wakes up in a Detroit suburb, loads up the minivan, drives the 600 miles through Ohio, Pennsylvania and the George Washington Bridge, and checks into a Manhattan hotel, all for a food craving. True story. Of course, NYC has other attractions, but the curry soup at Mee Noodle Shop is the siren song that calls to my husband, a call that he succumbs to about once a year.
Now picture the family walking up to Mee Noodle Shop (well, three walking, one rolling) for a late dinner. Who would have thought the hardest part of the trip would be the last 0.001%? True again, because you have to climb up two steps to enter the restaurant. No railing, no grab bar, just three scared family members trying to keep you from falling. So far I've always managed it, but it's getting scary. Once you're inside, if you can walk a little holding on to chairs and tables, you'll be all right, because the place is so tiny there's always something to grab. If you have a lightweight wheelchair that someone can carry in, you still might have a hard time getting around because it's so cramped, but it might be useful if you need to use the bathroom, which is on the main floor. In summary, good food, but a challenge for the disabled.
Now picture the family walking up to Mee Noodle Shop (well, three walking, one rolling) for a late dinner. Who would have thought the hardest part of the trip would be the last 0.001%? True again, because you have to climb up two steps to enter the restaurant. No railing, no grab bar, just three scared family members trying to keep you from falling. So far I've always managed it, but it's getting scary. Once you're inside, if you can walk a little holding on to chairs and tables, you'll be all right, because the place is so tiny there's always something to grab. If you have a lightweight wheelchair that someone can carry in, you still might have a hard time getting around because it's so cramped, but it might be useful if you need to use the bathroom, which is on the main floor. In summary, good food, but a challenge for the disabled.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Mario's Restaurant, 4222 2nd Avenue Detroit
A newcomer in comparison to Roma Cafe, Mario's has only been in operation since 1948, but the atmosphere in this restaurant, at least to me, is more elegantly old-fashioned. As soon as you sit down a waiter in a tux brings a relish tray with a bunch of old-school appetizers (cottage cheese, olives) plus one cold shrimp per person, and later prepares your salad tableside in a ritual apparently handed down for generations.
But we're here to talk about handicapped accessibility, which, I'm happy to say, is very good, especially for such an old building. The main floor is a few feet above street level, but there is a ramp instead of stairs at the entrance. Bathrooms are on the main floor. All in all, an easy experience for a wheelchair user and proof that a building doesn't have to be new to be accessible.
But we're here to talk about handicapped accessibility, which, I'm happy to say, is very good, especially for such an old building. The main floor is a few feet above street level, but there is a ramp instead of stairs at the entrance. Bathrooms are on the main floor. All in all, an easy experience for a wheelchair user and proof that a building doesn't have to be new to be accessible.
Roma Cafe, 3401 Riopelle, Detroit
Roma Cafe bills itself as "Detroit's oldest Italian restaurant." Opened in 1890 and located in the Eastern Market, it is third-generation family-owned and as far from an Olive Garden as you can get. It was also my nephew's choice for his college graduation party, but his mother had to veto the idea in consideration of my difficulty with the place. For one thing, there is a good 3-5 inch step-up at the entrance, probably from the settling that has occurred since the building was constructed 100 years prior to the Americans with Disabilities Act. Also, the Ladies' Room is located on the second floor, up a stairway. The last time I was there, the host offered to clear out the Men's Room, which is on the first floor, and stand guard so I could use it if necessary, so I guess technically they are providing a handicapped-accessible bathroom for everyone, but the "Jerry's Kids" quotient (degree to which the handicapped person is put on display and general bfd-level of the accommodation) is high enough to put it on my list of restaurants to avoid.
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