TO LANZAROTE / CANARIAN ISLANDS / SPAIN

When I was writing about my travelling ventures and reflecting on my past on Lanzarote where I lived, worked and partied for ten years and left in 1997, stigmatised as a neurotic by the local medico maffia, crippled and half paralysed, I thought, why not leave the icy cold winter in Belgium, in my homebase caravan with high expenditure on heat, and, go back to this island, proud, with my mobile high tech van filled with gadgets that enhance my independance and thus freedom.


I really love it, the long "walks", the people, the sea, the sun, the lovely skies.... :-)

approx 2700km by car (via MEDITERANEAN route) , approx 1500 by ferry Cadiz Las Palmas, then LAS PALMAS-LANZAROTE.
I travelled through the worse imaginable cold – my temparature gage is low, artritic people suffer badly from super cooling – but succeeded in avoiding the snow that would cover France entirely and a large part of Spain six hours after driving through. When I drive I relax – a solid ergo seat is vital – I listen to music and never compete with other drivers. That way I can easily drive twelve hours with every three hours some stretching, fuelling the car and the body for ten minutes. “I should have been a truckdriver” I often think.
automatic, in & out van through back doors with elevator

On arrival in SOUTH of SPAIN in TARIFA on camping RIO JARA I found excellent facilities - personal bathroom with key - but no access to the bar with the open fire, so I had to keep warm at night in the van, waiting to take the FERRY in CADIZ. No phones nor internet connections anywhere to be found, except if I had the courage to drive to stressful ALGECIRAS in the overpopulated shoppingcentre CARREFOUR where MOBILE HOME TRAVELLERS MEET - facing rude overworked commissioned vendors in an overcrowded noisy electrified cyber café.
FERRY to LAS PALMAS, 36 hours, two nights, seven meals. Spontanuously the “TRASMEDITERANEA” crew offered a cabin with bathroom perfectly adapted for wheelchairs, which seemed to be located at 3 meters from the restaurant, I would soon find out why so near.
On my first trial to get around on the boat, before departure, I noticed that I could not get on any of the terraces and thus could not relax outside with a fag and/or a joint and/or a glass of wine – obviously the architects never think that a wheelchairuser might also enjoy some fresh air and some relaxing drugs, or, are we supposed to be “good” and suffer in isolation?
double ramp, architect does not use electrical wheelchair

When the bored, impossible to understand, voice called for dinner I went in the queue and got sick within seconds despite keeping my eyes glued onto the horizon – a trick that usually works for me . The waiter saw my distress and guided me quickly back to the cabin, telling me “lie down I’ll be back in a second”. Minutes later he was back with a tray with lots of food and medecine, he said “we know the problem, your type of wheelchair tends to “swing” contrary to the movement of the boat which makes it impossible for you not to get seasick”, he added “take this medecine every 6 hours and try to eat as soon as you can after the first one”.
For the next 36 hours I was half asleep. I succeeded in taking lots of showers and sneekily in the bathroom smoke the occasional joint. Unhappily caged and isolated but with a kind camarero whom brings meals and comforted with the idea of being soon in a warm climate.

left to right: camarero brings food, perfect bathoom with slppery floor, camarero from Chnringuito whom dislocated his shoulder in his shower during my stay.

ALL BATHROOMS AND SHOWERS ARE A HEALTHHASARD ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

In LAS PALMAS I had to wait for sixteen hours before getting onto the FERRY to LANZAROTE, with the ARMAS compnay. There was one of these storms - the car was rocking heavily and scarily. I didn’t dare to drive away from the port into the city because I know too well the aggressive, rude and stressed attitude of the LAS PALMAS drivers.

ON THE WAY BACK, same ferry but I could not get in the office to get a boardingpass in ARRECIFE...... the waiting queue couldn't care less, but one memeber of the "marinero's" from the ferry came to my rescue instead of leaving me standing in the rain (the only day there was some rain).
First time I could not get in a public place on Lanzarote

LUCKY me the travel back home with the FERRY from ACCIONA is direct on a much larger boat, so I had a great trip and enjoyed 2 weeks of exceptionally warm spring time after arrival...
BUT I KEEP ON WORKING ON MY "MOBILITY PLAN" AND WILL NOT GIVE UP. Whilst staying in Gent/BELGIUM in summer I prepare next winter and demand from alll technicians a decent manuel with all the needed explanation for my genius old hippie friends on Lanzarote so that their inventivenes and the directions on the manual save my trip.:-)

WHAT A LIFE!
I have a great social life in Caleta de Famara and Villa de Teguise, where I feel home, where there is music, great people, the sea. So, I always return to this eastern corner of the island where I met new people that became friends, EMMA WATKINS and family are real buddies. The home of the whole family, 2 boys Jacob and Harry (my dear Little Big Man) and hubby John became my safest and most fun anker, for a chat, a shower, a bit of juice (electricity) ....Thanks to the Watkins life became so easy. EMMA

then there was carnival in La Caleta:

A LA BARTOLA where I can have 3 nights a week life music........ very therapeutic

My bones feel so much less stiff and aching, the air is cool and dry. The sea air gives me the needed energy to live well as an invalid nomad. There are days that I hate my "rare" way of life but the warmth on Lanzarote always wins. People have the character of the climate they live in.On Lanzarote they are cheerfull (sunny) and unpredictable (windy) in Belgium so selfprotective (rain) and so organised (cold).

The adventure of living as a free camper on an island where gipsies and hippies are tabu, started end 2005, first time: worse time.....I spend four days in someones accessible home but preferred living in my car surrounded by my books, my music..... my own tiny universe. These four days meant as well that I was physically threatened by slippery floors, jumping cats, curly carpets, half opening doors...I found someone I knew from the distant past whom connected me to his electricity supply in the middle of a quiet village in the north of the isalnd, ARRIETA.When I ventured out of the car I got hostile looks – free campers are not big spenders. The north, green in winter but always everywhere covered with volcanic ashes called “picon” that my elevator scoops up and gets grinded with horrifying sharp sounds when in motion.

BUT I am connected to the Watkins now!!! With my cable free IMac I work on the internet in my car.
Its great to lie on my bed in the car and work on internet for hours on end in CALETA de FAMARA: FRIENDS AND MUSIC
In 2005 I found this friend from the past, Roger, we had contact with each other till my departure from the island in ’97 and know one another since the seventies. He lives on LANZAROTE in CALETA de FAMARA – a real old fishers village with a great central area with terraces on sandy ground, in the east of the island.
A la Bartola, perfect for wheelchairs, where there is lots of life music.
Nowhere did I find the same feeling of freedom and practical support as in CALETA de FAMARA.

Mick Gonnel's piece for me
Mick GONNEL (well known artist on Lanzarote) always ready for a joke and helping hand.I love his exhibition in LA GALERIA (wheelchairfriendly) TEGUISE.


caring faces bring video's, coffee



some familiar faces

Whilst writing this website I enjoy the sun and its healing power. Without my car, elevator, wheelchair, computer, gadgets of progress and my daring character I would be stuck in an institution victim of indifferent, underpaid carers.
I stay as much as possible in hippies paradise CALETA de FAMARA, where the conejeros/ residents from abroad and clever tourists enjoy the "lack of progress" of this village, hidden behind the CLIFFS of FAMARA – the highest on the island – forgotten by greedy investors.

For some more social life I go to La Villa de Teguise where one finds lots of arts and crafts shops, where life music booms in the bar-tapas in the week ends . (see "wheelchairfriendly").