here i was - free from the hospital for the first time since the stroke and off to the hotel that was to be my home for the next 4-6 weeks.... i was a little nervous despite my assurances to everyone that id be fine on my own - totally on my own for the first time and after three months of dr's nurses. aids and therapists following my every move and helping at every turn, sure, id be great..... gulp - id done my research before booking the hotel, since i had my laptop in the hospital, id looked at their website and seen a photo and floor plan of their accessible room/suite and figured it would work... till i saw the real room, the web site had lied, lol - the path to the room should've given me an inkling of what was to come, the ramp from the parking lot was so steep i had trouble getting up even with my friend pushing (now i know to go backwards,but not then) - the transome was too high, too, and you couldn't get a running start due to an incline right before the door, thus, i couldn't even get in the door myself... and then we entered.... the "accessible" kitchen area didnt hadidn'tom to turn the chair in, so id have to back out once i entered, couldn't get straight on to the stove so that i could hold on and try to stand, not enough room to open oven, couldn't turn on either oven or burners because the controls were behinf tbehindners, couldn't use the microwave cause i could obly reonlyit with the weak side, same think for opening the fridge, and my favorite accessibility feature... the heavy china dishes were located in an open cabinet above the sink, where i couldn't reach them even before my stroke!!!

the living room area: carpet too thick so hard to propel chair, couch in middle of floor facing wall with coffee table in front of it and blocking chair, no room for wheelchair or transfer, phone in back corner, unreacunreachabler lamp in middle of room with switch at the very top and outlet in a whole in the carpet; but the wall lightswitch was lowered, so mustvemust'veaccessible... (i never got why they think lowering switches is important, even in a chair i can reach the normal height, and if i couldn't, id not be able to reach the lower, either....)

the bed area: the lamp was on a bedside table against the wall, where even from the bed id not be able to reach it cause i couldn't roll onto that side and it was a wide bed, there was a bedside table on the outside, too... situated so that the bathroom door dididn'tompletely open!!!!

bathroom: well, couldn't get the wheelchair in since i couldn't open the door enough... when that was remedied discovered that there wwasn'troom for the transfer bench in the tub or id not be able to get to the toilet;but there wwasn'ta hand shower atattachmentnyway, so it didn't matter, there wasn't enough room to put my commode over the toilet which would be fine except the only bars were on the wrong side for getting off the toilet;but they had a roll under sink, and lowered light switches so it was fully accessible, right ?

i was very disappointed and frustrated and truly for the very first time since the stroke did i doubt id be able to be alone....

hate to end on a down note;but i'm late to leave for pool therapy, have faith that i managed next: how i managed