It all started a sleepless night of July 1999, when, taken out from a light sleep by a movement of Mirabelle who was sleeping next to me, I began to think.
I had to resolve an issue which was pending for some months now: “How to realize his dreams of travel, discovery and adventure, when we have as little mobility as me?”. I have to precise that Mirabelle and I both desire to experience something extraordinary, in the first sense.
We certainly thought to spend a year in Australia, Mexico or Panama, but we soon had to face the facts that this dream would be difficult to achieve. We would have indeed to find on site a person worthy of trust and strong enough to carry me and put me on a bed, in the bath or the toilet, and this for very few money.
In our flat, a type of monorail in the ceiling allows Mirabelle to carry me from the bed to the bath or toilet without effort, using a crane moving along the rail. This is a great device but far too expensive for that we can install one similar in an apartment abroad, furthermore to stay for one year only. Obviously, this problem would cause us concern as part of our project, but every time we would like to spend a weekend elsewhere than at home. Therefore, during that night of insomnia, I concluded that I had to find a way to take this essential “comfort” with us. I knew the existence of cranes on wheels that can be folded and transported in the trunk of a car. This is an interesting alternative, but it asks the apartment in which we want to use it, to be large enough, to have wide doors and a clawfoot tub, so that the base of the crane could roll underneath. In addition to all these conditions already very restrictive, I first have to be able to access this hypothetical home with my electric wheelchair. In short, you understand that this is an almost impossible task.
These thoughts had woken me up completely. I tossed and turned the problem in all directions when… of course! If it is so difficult to access a hotel room, a bed or a bath, we must “simply” travel with a hotel room fully adapted! Traveling with a room?!? Completely crazy, you will say. No, we just have to install a rail system to the ceiling of a caravan or a motorhome!
I literally had a crush on this new idea. So I immediately reviewed all the difficulties that such a project would generate. I have tried, one by one, to be sure that none of them was eliminated. I also weighed the negatives to quickly realize that the balance was very positive. I then just had to wait for the morning to know how Mirabelle would welcome that idea. Needless to say she was excited by the prospect of such an adventure. She even added that living in a home that moves was one of her childhood dreams!
Therefore, the idea matured to relate all of this adventure on a website…
See you!
Jenri