Vectis bus not for disabled?

My wife is disabled, but has a very independent mind. Sometimes she likes to go places on her own, just to realise she is free to go wherever she wants to go.
But I always have to warn her that this is not a fact. She loves to travel, for instance by train and bus. That is already a challenge in itself, but I really had to tell her it is impossible to take the bus, line 8, from our home and travel to Newport directly.

This is the nearest bus stop, Seaview Lane. It's a few paving tiles big, a little space created in the middle of the shrubs. Two people can stand on it. The kerb is not lowered at all. No way a wheelchair can get up there.

The next busstop you can get to when you walk a bit further. It's called Nettlestone Manor. It's just a pole on top of a wall. The busy road is running next to it, no pavement at all. People actually get on the bus in the nearby bend in the road. There is an entrance to farmland over there. The pavement on the other side of the road is not lowered anywhere. The road is quite busy, being the main road between Ryde and Bembridge.

There is a next bus stop a bit further away, in front of the Isle of Wight Distillery. There is even a footpath, already out of reach for wheelchair users, but a barrier blocks it securely for them. We were once told this was to prevent horses, motorcycles and mopeds to get onto it. We explained to a councillor that this blocks wheelchair users to use a public path. It did not lead to any change.

So there is no option than to go to opposite direction, into Seaview. Above is the nearest bus stop, on Steyne Road, a walk/ride of 20 minutes. As you can see, there is no place where the kerb has been lowered to allow a wheelchair user to get on the pavement and get to the bus stop. I would say it's quite a jump with a wheelchair.
The distance from our house is no good of course. I can tell that I would be half way to Newport by car in the time it takes to get here.

A bit further from this bus stop, I can see the next one on Steyne Road. It would take no more than a few minutes to get there from this bus stop where I stood taking the picture. It has a lowered kerb, but I would say that the distance is obviously too far from our house.

Maybe you would think our situation is exceptional. It's not, I can assure you. It's obvious that the main thought while positioning bus stops is not that they should be available for everybody.
That is remarkable, I always thought that public transport should be for all.
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Creative with dog shit

As a cat owner I miss out on a thing some dog owners seem to enjoy a lot.
It's the possibility to be creative with the shit of your dog. Like putting a flag on it.

The most boring thing is to just pick it up, put it in shit bag and throw it away.
There is already a little variety possible: put the bag somewhere or just throw it on the pavement.

I think the most difficult one is to create a slalom circuit. Probably nice for people in wheelchairs or mobility scooters to use. It requires a bit of thinking where you let your dog squat to do it's thing.
Another thing is to create a sliding circuit: spread the shit out so people can slide on it.

There are endless ways of getting rid of the shit bag. Putting it in a bin is far too simple. Why not hanging it on a nice spot, so everybody can admire your handy work?
Just look around and you'll see there are loads of nice spots to hang it.

If you are really into creating, how about the last picture I put on over here?
I'm not the most creative person, so I'm certain other people can make nicer arrangements, could make art.

Maybe we should start a competition: who is the most creative person with this material?

Enjoy!
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Winter Gardens and the lost Royal Victoria Pier in Ventnor

Today we paid a visit to the reopened Ventnor Winter Gardens. We were looking forward to this because my wife and I both love a bit of history, especially from our island.
Soon came the disappointment: there was no way of visiting the upper floors. Nothing is done to make it accessible for disabled people.

We made our mood noticed to the Events Manager of the venue and she was very understanding, took her time to give us a personal lecture about the art deco building and it's history.
She also told us a lot about the pier that once was here: the Royal Victoria Pier. I found some pictures on the net: it must have been a remarkable thing.

The Winter Gardens itself had been a venue where the biggest names in pop and jazz history have performed. We have been given a list of the bands that once played here:
Moody Blues, Pretty Things, The Who, Zombies, Johnny Kidd and the Pirates, The Tremeloes, Mr.Acker Bilk, Kenny Ball, Chris Barber and also forgotten bands like The Scapegoats, Nashville Teens, Heinz and the Wild Ones.

For some time the band in residence was Davy Jones and The Lower Third. It was the new band of Davy Jones, before that he was accompanied by the Manish Boys, but started with the King Bees.
The picture shows the band posing in an arty way, certainly instigated by Davy Jones himself.
A few months after this, he changed his name into David Bowie and went solo.

For some time in the early 80s the Winter Gardens had a skating rink, constructed of plastic and according to our lecturer not very well to skate on. It later became useful as the practicing room for a young musician, Mark King and his band. Later they became world famous as Level 42.

The pier burned down in 1987, after years of discussion the remains were removed in 1993. The Winter Gardens went through some troubled years. Was even sold for £1 in a very deplorable state.
But now it's restored in it's full glory. In it's restaurant you can have nice drinks and food.
Check the website: https://theventnorwintergardens.com/
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