After a quick visit to a Terracotta Warrior factory and craft centre, with level access, one headed out to the Emperor Qinshihuang’s Mausoleum in Lintang where the original Terracotta Warriors are located. It is worth noting that the ‘accessible’ routes around the site are a little confusing and even if one follows the wheelchair signs, you still may encounter steps. The are three pits within which the Terracotta Warriors were discovered with pit 1 being the largest with 6000 Warriors…
It appears that wheelchair users can only access the top viewing platform as there are steps down to the sides. However, pits 2 and 3 are completely wheelchair accessible as is the Chariot Museum
N.B. Make sure you press the right floor in the museum lift as everything is on -1 rather than 2 as initially thought.
As of 2017, pit 3 is yet to be excavated.
Tomorrow, we travel to Xi’An International Airport to catch a 2 hour internal flight to our final destination of Shanghai.
Before heading to visit the Terracotta Warriors, one took a trip to the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda which is one of the most famous landmarks in Xi’An. It is worth noting that this requires some prior planning unless you are fluent in Mandarin otherwise one could end up going round in circles!
The Giant Wild Goose Pagoda stands 7 storeys high and has a lean to it but not as much as Pisa! As one rolls around the monastery, it is possible to visit Buddha and the various other buildings and halls. At the entrance, it is possible for staff to open a gate making it much easier for a wheelchair user to enter.
At first, it was decided to bounce the wheelchair up the steps at the base of the Pagoda, however, one soon realised that there is, in fact a ramp hiding on the right side of the Pagoda, near the cemetery, to take you up to the majestic site.
Travelling through Xi’An, one took a look at the general accessibility, it’s interesting because many of the local shops had level access yet some of the major chain stores were not. Although one didn’t catch the subway in Xi’An, research suggests that only some of the subway stations are accessible and the rolling stock allows for level boarding.
It was an early start as one headed to Beijing West train station to catch the Bullet Train to Xi’an. On entrance to the station, one is required to go through security showing your passport and ticket but other than that it was a rather simple process. Wheelchair users are required to visit the ‘station master desk’ around 30 minutes before departure for in order for the staff to take you down to the platform. The train itself is almost level to the platform making it easy to board…
As one was booked in first class, I didn’t get chance to see if there was a wheelchair space, however, it would be possible to simply sit by the door if not…
After arriving at arrived at Xi’an North station, one was transferred to the hotel which is located within the walled Downtown district.
One must say about dinner before finishing this post. We were met by Henry, a management trainee, who seemed to know exactly how to interact with a disabled individual, for example, holding the menu in front of me while one read it. It’s interesting for one to see that, whilst the government may not support families with disabled children well, society seems to be very welcoming.
Tomorrow we head to the Big Wild Goose pagoda followed by the Terracotta Warriors
After visiting The Great Wall of China, one headed back to Beijing to experience Temple of Heaven…
Accessibility wise, it is clear that efforts have been made to improve access across the site…
However, some modifications are a little questionable including this one leading to the Temple…
Albeit quite scary, one managed to reach the top presenting an insight into The Temple of Heaven, it’s intricate external artwork of dragons and Phoenix’ together with the lavish interior…
Tomorrow we catch the famous Chinese Bullet Train to Xian to visit The Terracotta Warriors.
Today, we headed outside the city of Beijing and travelled to Badaling where a section of The Great Wall of China is located before stretching a further 7800km. One chose to scale the wall at Badaling as there is also a section that is wheelchair accessible. However, before exploring this, we decided that in order to get an authentic feel, one would bounce backwards up the steps…
After this point, the gradient becomes quite steep hence we decided to retreat back down and find the accessible route which located on the opposite side of the road to the ticket office. There are two ways of reaching the wheelchair accessible part of The Great Wall, one can either roll up the ramp or take one of two lifts. However, it is worth noting that a wheelchair user needs to let them know in advance if they wish to use the lifts. As a result, one went up the ramped access…
The ramp enables one to access a reasonably flat fortification with good views of the Wall and surrounding countryside. It is also possible to enter one of the Great Wall’s accommodation towers, however there is a little step up to that…
As one exited the Beijing Subway Network, the sight of the Beijing Olympic Tower (which is 246.8 metres) greeted us. However, the first aim was to roll to the iconic Birds Nest Stadium and Water Cube. As one would expect from a modern Olympic Park, the majority of the park is wheelchair accessible, especially the central ‘boulevard’…
The famous Birds Nest Stadium is located just off the ‘boulevard’…
Before hopping back onto the Subway Network, one couldn’t resist a visit to the Beijing Olympic Tower. The tower costs around £20 per person. For this, one can visit several observation decks (all accessible) including a glass floor….
Tomorrow, we head outside Beijing to visit the world famous Great Wall of China.
As one mentioned yesterday, the plan for today was to head across Beijing to the Olympic Park which is home to structures including the Birds Nest and Water Cube constructed for the 2008 Games. However, one first had to navigate the Beijing Subway Network which is amongst the longest in the world.
As per usual, one did some prior research finding out what stations are accessible only to discover that it isn’t possible to download any form of accessibility map! As a result, one had to resort to watching YouTube videos in addition to zooming in 500% on images.
Luckily for one, the line that we wanted to go on (Line 8) to visit the Olympic Park is completely accessible. However, it is worth noting that the lift at Nanluogu Xiang station (which is the terminus) is located down the side passage.
Line 8 consists of modern rolling stock meaning that level boarding is possible…
Once inside, a designated wheelchair space is present with a seatbelt that allows the user to secure a mobility device during transit if appropriate…
As one implied, this afternoon was about visiting Beijings famous landmarks including The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. The city has made strides in terms of accessibility as a result of the 2008 Paralympic Games and this is clearly visible at the entrance of The Forbidden City…
A short walk across the road from The Forbidden City is Tiananmen Square. The area is pretty easy to roll around for wheelchair users, that is once one has navigated through the traffic…
It is worth noting for wheelchair users who wish to explore outside this area that one can’t guarantee that all of the citys underpasses are accessible. It may be a ramp leading down to said underpass, however, the other side consisted of steps. One would therefore recommend that you get on the right side early enough before you head out of town!
Tomorrow, one plans to visit the famous Olympic Park using the Beijing Subway Network.
One would have started this post by saying Hello in Chinese, however, this iPad doesn’t have the Chinese alphabet thus Hello from Beijing will have to do!
After a 9 hour ‘red eye’ flight, we touched down at Beijing Capital International Airport. One was amazed to see the speed at which the baggage handlers brought up the manual wheelchair to the plane door, around 10 minutes!
Its worth mentioning that Superbunny has stayed in the UK on this occasion as Chinese officials are a little wary of electric wheelchairs as a result of a recent incident. It is hoped that one will be able to roll around China in Superbunny in the future.
During our time in Beijing, one is staying at The Peninsula Hotel. It has to be said that this hotel can only be classed as luxury in ones opinion…
Here are some photos of what greeted one in an ‘accessible’ room.
As accessible rooms go, it is one of the best that we have stayed in thus far. Just look at that shower chair. The room itself is controlled by touch screens where one is able to turn the lights on and off in addition to opening and closing the curtains!
The plan for this afternoon is to explore the Forbidden Palace, Tiananmen Square and Downtown. As usual, one did a little of prior research and noted that, as a result of the 2008 Paralympic Games, the access of the city has dramatically improved thus it will be interesting to see to what extent.
As ones flight wasn’t until 18:00pm, I decided to undertake an experiment by taking a stroll around Copenhagen by oneself to see how Danish people would interact with a disabled individual without anyone to assist. To make things more interesting, one only knows two words of Danish!
Beginning the experiment, one rolled down to the waterfront where the Copenhagen Mall is situated and journeyed through some of the surrounding housing areas. It is surprising how many houses and apartments had step free access, Scandinavian design at it’s finest! One continued by a desire to find out whether the metro network was accessible. One is unsure if all the metro and suburban stations have lifts, however, this one had so one went for a gander. One was approached by a few Danes whilst attempting to push the lift button. Despite the language barrier, one gathered that they were asking to help. Once on the platform, one studied the suburban trains and it appears that there is a designated disabled area signposted by a large wheelchair image, however, there is a step up into the carriage! One can only presume that ramps are available upon request.
After checking out of the hotel, one headed down to Copenhagen train station to catch the train out to the airport. After our successful trip to Malmo on Wednesday, one thought it would be a simple process getting Superbunny on and and off and it was indeed! It has to be said that catching the train to the airport is most likely the cheapest and efficient option as it takes you directly beneath Terminal 3. It is all wheelchair accessible also .
The airport process went according to plan and, for once, security talked to one like an actual human being and not some child. Although our flight was delayed by half an hour, we were escorted into the Ambulift early and then sat on the airfield for half an hour waiting for the plane to come in, efficiency that!
Next month, one will be taking the long haul flight to China to visit Beijing, Xian (Visiting the Terracotta Warriors) and Shanghai.
