It’s almost winter. This is the time in the Northern Hemisphere that we dream of wonderful escapes to warmer places–close to the equator.

In 2012, I went on my first accessible cruise with an old friend. What a wonderful experience!  Hurrah for Celebrity Cruises, Inc! Hurrah for all of the disability-conscious tour guides– especially in Costa Rica and Panama! And hurrah for my friend who convinced me to try it!

If you ever get a chance, I would highly recommend that you try going on a cruise. A cruise is a very comfortable way to see faraway lands. And if you choose the right itinerary with port cities that are directly reachable from the ship, without any need for boarding an extra transport boat, you can’t go wrong. I would love to go again, but it must be on a very new and very big ship. Rumor has it that those freshly-built giant ships are the most convenient for people who have a post-polio disability. We sailed on the Celebrity Equinox and it was extremely wheelchair-friendly.

At no extra cost the ship had accessible:

• staterooms
• private bathrooms
• balconies
• public bathrooms (with both electric entrance and stall doors!)
• elevators
• theaters
• gangplanks
• chairlifts into the pools and hot tubs
• destination tours to sign up for

And best of all, there were 1000 friendly employees who were always smiling and ready to help you with almost anything! (Remember to take enough currency for tips.)

We traveled along the eastern coast of Central America in January for 14 days. My favorite ports were in Mexico for good shopping, then Costa Rica and Panama for comfortable day-long tours. In Costa Rica we got to see and hear howler monkeys on an accessible boat cruise down a jungle river. Then we peered out of our accessible train windows at indigenous two-toed sloths napping in the dense green equatorial foliage. We also recognized ripening yellow bananas hanging high above us in huge-leafed trees, as we slowly passed them in our accessible bus. Boats, trains and buses.

It was amazing that we could do all that.

In Panama my manual wheelchair rolled right onto the ramped cable car for a slow, reverent ride through the lush jungle rain forest. We rode in a wheelchair-friendly van across the country to the Panama Canal, and in Panama City stopped for the local treat–a hot dog with first, ketchup, then crushed potato chips on top. It was a delightful, salty taste treat for anyone immersed in Panama’s dripping tropical heat. (Somehow, when I excitedly served it to friends back home a few months later, it wasn’t critiqued to be quite so sumptuous. In fact, they agreed that it was a culinary creation that Martha Stewart would definitely ignore. Wonder why? Oh well. I liked it.)

Back on the room’s balcony that night, drinks in hand, we witnessed a dramatic sunset. Orange, gold, blue, black. Then as twilight transpired, I breathlessly gazed out at all the twinkling international cargo ships that were systematically lined up for at least 30 miles. They seemed so polite. They were each waiting their turn to pass to the other side of the world through the Panama Canal. Hundreds of ships, covering the ocean waters. In my mind’s eye, they became a glittering interwoven necklace of diamonds–a floating spectacle.  More gliding vessels captivated my imagination as they silently emerged on the distant horizon. I grew increasingly enchanted. I wondered about each ship’s home nation and destination, what they were transporting; about their captain and crew members– how their language and voices sounded when they spoke.  What color and design were their ship fatigues? Who, on which ship, might be sadly suffering an intense longing for someone halfway around the world? Who was missing a distant wife…husband…sweet-faced children…a lost lover…a tenderhearted mother?

Ah, the world is so full of  wonderful people and places to see. And thanks to the Disability Rights Movement of  our generation, we now have opportunities to travel to distant lands where our wheelchairs and scooters, crutches and walkers never used to take us.

Now they do.

My friends, Bruce and Diane, are experienced cruisers. They especially enjoy joining folks for the annual “post-polio cruise.” It’s part of a Royal Caribbean or Celebrity get-away that embarks out of Ft. Lauderdale, Florida every winter for southern destinations. To learn more,  click on the Boca Area Post Polio Group’s Newsletter.

If you are considering taking a cruise for the first time, here is what they advise:

To print a copy, click on HAVE PASSPORT WILL TRAVEL

Yes, it’s almost winter and time for a wonderful escape.

How would you like to sail to a distant land?  Would you even consider trying a hot dog topped with ketchup and crushed potato chips? Hmmm…

It might be your time.

What are YOUR thoughts on this?

Ever been on a cruise?

What was it like for you?

Thinking of trying a cruise?

What questions might you have about such sea-faring adventures?