Went to V2007 Festival at the weekend and had a great time. Took the trike as usual (I'm not on commission I promise) and it was great for travelling around to each stage. It was a bit daunting at times though as there are so many people walking about and they only see you at the last minute. There were quite a few other wheelchair users there and the ones that didn't have trikes or scooters just had people helping them to push..

I went with my friend Faye and met up with a load of other friends who were already there camping. Mobile phones are a nightmare at festivals as there are so many people trying to make and receive call that they rarely work. The best way of communicating is by text as they will always get through within a few minutes. If you are trying to meet up with people its tough but I managed to meet up with my friends early on then lost them later so Faye and I just headed over to the main stage to watch Pink. She was awesome, absolutely amazing singer and what a great performance as well. She really owns the stage when she's on it.

                      

The wheelchair platform at the main stage is perfect for watching the bands. You are a bit further back than you would like to be but when there are 80,000 people all squashed together in front of the stage, your quite grateful to have a flat elevated platform to sit and watch the action from in relative comfort.

It started raining about 9.30pm half way through the Foo Fighters set but by then we didn't care. We had our waterproof macks on, "No Way Back" was blasting out of the speakers at us and we were just 2 more nodding heads in a sea of nodding heads. A really great day.

 

Cyprus June 2007. I've just got back from a great holiday in Cyprus with Jo and Nieve. We stayed in a lovely 3 bed villa near Peyai which is half hour drive from Paphos. We found the villa through a friend who had already stayed there and they remembered that the place had a hoist for the pool and roll in showers.

We travelled with Easyjet from Gatwick and the flight couldn't have been easier. Again I wanted to take my trike with me in case we wanted to do some site seeing(although we didn't, and the trike stayed in the boot of the car for the whole holiday). I have to commend Easyjet as they really are great at dealing with wheelchairs and their occupants. Transferring at either end was simple; you just have to wait for everyone else to get off first. The staff are always really helpful and can't do enough for you. Once out of customs we headed for the car rental area and located out car. We were a bit nervous about getting all the gear and us into one car but with a little help from the rep we got the trike in the boot with main case Nieve in the back with her case along with my wheelchair. Sorted, we were off.

We found the villa easily with the directions given and settled ourselves in. the Villa was lovely will great access to all areas and the hoist for the pool.

I haven't used a hoist before(apart from in hospital when I had a broken collar bone) but this one was great. You can't operate it on your own which is a bit of a drag but getting in and out is easy. The chair of the hoist even doubles as a shower chair so no need for one of those too.

                                     

 

We spent to week just chilling during the day by playing in the pool, sunbathing and looking for a nice restaurant in the evenings. First night we went to Coral Bay which was a strip of restaurants, bars and clubs. The restaurants were ok but we felt that we could be in any part of Spain, not Cyprus as it was full of English bars and English tourists. Access was good though, no problems getting in most of the bars and restaurants. After that we decided to head more inland to find little villages where the taverna's were tucked away and we could sample the real Cypriot cuisine and lifestyle. The prices were a lot cheaper too!! We found the most places were accessible to the restaurant but very few could give you access to their toilet facilities.

Jo managed to find a riding stable for Nieve so one afternoon they set so Nieve could spend and afternoon riding a pony on the beach. She had a great time, while I lay on my lounger in the pool and took it easy.

                             

 

 

 

 

Once we had had our dinner in the evenings we would retreat back to the villa to sit and chat, listen to the ipod and drink too much red wine. I think I had drunk enough by now!

         

All in all Cyprus was a great holiday but I am not sure I would be in a rush to go back. The villa was great and really for the price we couldn't have asked for much better. We just felt a bit let down by the area and the fact that the resorts had all become a bit commercial. If you are willing to head off the beaten track then you will come across the real Cyprus.