Itinerary Update!

Caesar and I will be flying from London to Washington DC on Tuesday 10th January 2006, once we're over the journey, we'll enjoy some sightseeing and hopefully get to meet up with Rochelle. Saturday 14th January we'll fly west to San Diego, this will give us time to meet up with our hosts and to take in some sightseeing before the conferences. After the conferences we'll relax for an extra day in San Diego before flying to New York on Tuesday 24th January. We're really looking forward to meeting up with Mary Jane and more Golden friends in NYC, and of course to take in some of the sights and maybe a bit of shopping before leaving NYC late on Sunday 29th, arriving back in London on the morning of Monday 30th January.


View from near our hotel in Washngton DC



Aerial view of our hotel & conference venue in San Diego


Views of and from our hotel in New York City

1. Welcome! I'm new to blogging but have taken the plunge in order to be able to share my diary during an upcoming trip to The United States.
   
   Caesar and I are an assistance dog partnership, he helps me tremendously with tasks to make life easier on a day to day basis. You can catch more about us at our website, but basically, I have been a wheelchair user for some time since sustaining severe brain and neck injuries in a sporting accident, and Caesar is a registered assistance dog from Dogs for the Disabled.
   
   Since being partnered with Caesar almost five years ago, I have become increasingly active in campaigning for greater access for people with disabilities and assistance dog partnerships.
   At the end of last month we were both in Salzburg for the annual conference of Assistance Dogs Europe where I co presented a presentation on access for assistance dog partnerships across Europe, this was the culmination of several months of research.
   
   At about that time I learned that I had won a scholarship from the International Association of Assistance Dog Partnerships to attend their annual conference and also that of Assistance Dogs International, which are being held consecutively in San Diego in January 2006. Wow!
   
   Caesar and I have travelled together extensively in Europe before but never beyond, so this will be a new experience for us both.