MS in Africa

One of the things that we have been really looking forward to on the trip was meeting up with Lizzie’s parents, first in Lilongwe and then in Livingstone. Whilst we pedalled the several hundred kilometres in between them, they swanned around on Lake Malawi relaxing and generally enjoying themselves. It was wonderful to see them, have some of our supplies replenished and hear about how cold 2013 has been in the UK.

Travelling in Africa with Mum gives an interesting perspective on how countries accommodate disability and highlights some of the huge challenges that disabled people living here must face.  Through our travels we have come across a number of people with physical disabilities, sometimes being pushed in wheel chairs, others self propelling with equipment such as this great ‘bike’ we  found in Malawi. Most impressive was the one legged Kenyan who cycled several hundred kilometres with us, at extreme pace (ie. way faster than the majority of us). He, however, was of titanic strength and had been set to compete at the London Paralympics had it not been for the withdrawal of his funding.

 

Ali testing out some disability-friendly transport in Malawi

We consider the potholed road and cracked pavement the features that give African cities their character. However, in a wheelchair this can make even a short trip from a restaurant to the bank a hugely challenging, and potentially impossible journey (when it’s not possible to ford the deep gutter lining the road). You start to notice that a hotel you consider largely flat is littered with steps up here and down there. Even the odd ramp can be at such an impossibly steep gradient that Mum is left wondering if she’s about to be ejected onto the floor. Don’t get me wrong, wheel chair travel can be fun – we spent a good 10 minutes trying different angles and speeds of acceleration as we raced together back up a bank of the Zambezi. As we teetered at the top of 30 perilously wet steps leading to the viewing spot of Victoria Falls several muscle bound Zambians rushed to our aid and hoisted the chair a lot further into the air than Mum was necessarily comfortable with and heroically carried her down.

Charlotte’s thirst for adventure never quenched: doing a microlight flight over Victoria Falls

However, whilst a holiday may be a break from the routine, there is no holiday for Mum (or Dad) from the MS. But anyone looking for a new line of business, I do think there might be an opportunity for disability friendly travel guides….


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The MS Centre which Mum attends is one of the charities which we are raising money for – see our charity giving page      CLICK HERE to donate to the MS Centre which Mum attends and our other charities