Miss Wheechair India 2015 experience and my dream destination Paris – by Sneha Khaitan
I want to share my travel story about my Bangalore trip. The purpose of going to Bangalore was to participate in a beauty pageant “Miss Wheelchair India 2015” which was held there and I was one of the finalist of that event.
When I got selected and I came to know that I will have to go to Bangalore, I was more nervous about my travel than the event itself. I am suffering from “Muscular Dystrophy” Which lacks body balance and my travel was completely depended on others. The thought of travelling miles away scared the hell out me.
I had never travelled that much distance in my life so far. I live in a very small village of Bihar (Pirpainti, Bhagalpur) and it’s really tough to go to anywhere from here. The major problem is train and there is no airport here within 500 kms.
To catch my flight for Bangalore I had to go to Kolkata airport and from Bhagalpur to Kolkata, I had to travel by train. I felt that trains are pain in India. My Wheelchair could not go through narrow compartments. And 2 male Assistants held me up and took me to my seat. The worst thing was people staring at me. Anyway the experience was not that bad. Airport was quite disabled friendly and I did not faced much problem there except the narrow space between seats. I had faced a little bit trouble while transferring from wheelchair to my seat due to narrow space.
Once I reached Bangalore I did not face much trouble. The whole city was quite accessible including my hotel. I enjoyed a lot. And this is one of the best experiences of my life. I felt fresh and alive. I would love to travel to Bangalore again and many more places of India and abroad. My dream place is Paris and I surely want to travel there at least once in my life.
Even though my journey was not so smooth but it gave me a lot of happiness and a life time experience. Now I would say no one should let their disability and fear come in between their travelling dreams. Keep travelling & keep exploring.
Sneha Khaitan is a Graphic Designer by profession. She is a also a dreamer and believes that one can fulfill all their dreams with their determination.
Wow, superb
Like you I also have a dream to visit one time in Paris