Definitions of bohemian on the Web:

• Gypsy: a member of a people with dark skin and hair who speak Romany and who traditionally live by seasonal work and fortunetelling; they are ...

• of or relating to Bohemia or its language or people

• a native or inhabitant of Bohemia in the Czech Republic

• a nonconformist writer or artist who lives an unconventional life
• unconventional in especially appearance and behavior; "a bohemian life style"

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But I think I make it too grandiose. I am none of those things - immigrant yes, but not Czech but Chinese and not really unconventional nor artiste :-(

But what about Li Po's /Li Bai's famous poem, Thoughts on a Still night
Before my bed, the moon is shining bright,
I think that it is frost upon the ground.
I raise my head and look at the bright moon,
I lower my head and think of home.

(Source - http://www.chinese-poems.com/lb4t.html)

There is no moon tonight but it is cold. Chinese new year is approaching but my thoughts of home are not of China but of Malaysia - where it is equatorial steamy heat. Its my parents who are from China and I am in UK which is even colder than my ancestral village in Quangzhou.

What does it all mean? Does it have to mean anything? I find myself wishing i have someone to get excited about that it is the new year coming. While I am at it does it mean I have the advantage of calling myself a global citizen or a rootless immigrant? I am in West Midlands, home to Shakespeare - did he create any characters who feel as rootless as I do? Why do I think of Caliban?

My kids are bored of my questions of where I want my ashes to go - they think it is morbid. I think it is too. I shall return to this question of rootlessness later right now it seems like self indulgence.

We went to Dallas, Texas. There were the four of us, John, Nick and his PA, Ben. I did not have the time to write about it while we were there. The journey went smoothly - much better than I had feared. Gatwick Airport  was efficient and checked us in and dispatched us to the door of the plane without insisting that we transferred to their chairs. It helped that my brother in law, KC, had us upgraded to business class. John especially was happy that we got to wait at the first class lounge when we checked in - with the  limitless drinks ans snacks offered.

Nick was happy with his choice of magazines and I thought I could finally relax because I was tense with fear that things might go awry about wheelchairs etc.

Nope. We managed to get to our seats without too much fuss although we didn't get the seats I thought I had reserved for us. Rightly or wrongly, I think American Airlines is good about getting wheelchair customers support right. We certainly appreciated the comfortable seats which were adjustable - Nick could not have done without them for the journey was a grueling 10 hour trip.

KC met us as planned and he had the hired accessible Dodge mini van (from Wheelchair Getaway) which took the two power wheelchairs. I had booked us into Embassy Suites near Galleria shopping center. It had okay rooms and two swans in the restaurant area. We all thought it was cruel to keep swans in a hotel - they must be driven mad by boredom if nothing else.

My relatives asked what is there to do in Dallas apart from shopping. I asked that myself but we managed to fit in going to a rodeo in Fort Worth, going to South Fork ranch (from the Dallas series fame), Sixth Floor museum where JRK got shot and lots of eating. I have never been to a rodeo before so it was quite fun - doing the Texan thing. Everything was quite accessible. The only fly in the ointment was the singer - she screeched and wailed till I thought she was going to do my head in. I think - and hope- she was a stand in.

 
I only wished we had enough time to have gone to see more of Texas but KC took us to some hotel conference place - Gaylord Resort- which had some awful replicas of San Antonio Riverwalk and the Hill country. We also went to South Fork ranch. Never ever really watched the Dallas series nor a fan of the Ewing family, the saving grace for me was a very entertaining young tour guide by the name of Clare who told us some ripping yarns and she was pretty to boot much to the appreciation of my companions..

Our journey back was quite uneventful until we got to Gatwick. They wanted us to transfer. Nick stood his ground and they eventually transported our chairs to meet us at the door of the plane. The staff were not originally willing to move the distance from the lifts. It was worth kicking up a fuss and the crew agreed with us that it was right that we should have our chairs awaiting us at the door of the aircraft. After all we did give them an hour's notice that we needed them.


For  the first time  I  took the train back  from Gatwick to  Coventry.  It was not too bad I changed at  Watford and did  not have to go through  Central London.nti_bug_fck

Tonight i came back to Coventry in time for Quesha's 18th birthday. I couldn't believe it when they told me at euston that I have to come home in a taxi - black cab all the way.. It must cost Virgin a fortune to send all those who cannot take buses in taxis!

I asked for and received Walt Balenovich Travels in a Blue Chair : Alaska to Zambia Ushuia to Uluru, a series of short stories from North America's Disabled Adventurer for Christmas.

I was looking forward to reading it - since he is a fellow polio survivor, however, I am left feeling let down. Here is a chap who is clearly adventourous and undaunted by stairs etc ( I am amazed at the number of places he stayed at which were up steps and stairs where he had to be carried up by strangers) BUT he does not leave clear impressions of the people he encountered or the places. I also wish that there is some system to the way he numbered his chapters, from the first chapter in Tokyo, he went to Uluru in Australia and by the third chapter, he was in Paris. Neither the geography nor the chronology was evident to me. I might be anal as a wannabe librarian but some inklng of how he got from one continent to the next would be useful.

Here is a sample of his writing: http://www.bluechairbook.com/index_files/Page1084.htm

Without sounding too negative, I am bemused at gems like, "My notions of the staid Japanese were immediately challenged and I realized that Asia was going to be a totally unique experience for me." I started wondering if he ever ventured to any Asian neighbourhoods in North America before he took the plane to Tokyo. Is he naive or are Canadians that confident of their reception and survival abroad?

The questions I am left with asking is how does he see that his travelling in a wheelchair has coloured his viewpoint - apart from the environmental barriers and the help he recieved from strangers, how does he compare attitudes towards his fellow disabled in these countries he visited? Did he encounter any?

And if it is a purely tourist book, he left no hints about the countries he visited. Am I being too harsh ? For example I read his chapter on his visit to Singapore - he wrote: "The real reason I wanted to visit was that it had formerly been a British colony and so they spoke English. After my earlier visit to Japan, I was looking forward to being able to taLK to some of the locals." But the thing is that he did not really have any conversations with any of the locals. There is so much about Singapore beyond the facile remarks about its rules about no chewing gum etc.

My opinion about the book? Its sad - but apart from applauding his undoubted adventourous spirit, I don't feel I have learnt anything from reading his book.

Here is his blog - http://travelsinabluechair.blogspot.com

Best read him in his words and decide for yourselves.
p/s I hope this is not too harsh a review for a fellow wheelchair traveller but I still think he ought to reoganise his chapters and some of his stories/accounts could do with some fleshing out. I get the impression that he just threw out those chapters like he emptied his knapsack - for the stories to have more merit he could put in some more editing.

At the Gare du Nord, Herve from PTITCAR was waiting for me as promised and whisked me off to La Villette which was further than I had anticipated.