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How
& why
I came to visit the PI !
Greetings!
My name is Mike.
After
being in a car accident in 1986, at the age of 19,
I ended up paralyzed from the neck down. I am a
C4-5 quadriplegic. Since I could only use one arm,
I was forced to use a heavy electric chair to get
around. I went to collage at the University
of Missouri and obtained my Mechanical Engineer
degree. School was tuff but no matter how hard I
tried, finding a girl friend, let alone a lifetime
partner, seemed like an impossibility.
During
collage, I started getting acquainted with
websites introducing men and women for all around
the world. I of course started looking here in the
good old USA but in time those I did meet lost
interest due primarily to my disability. I kept
looking but as I went through school, my time
became less and less as my studies grew and grew.
After
I received my BSME degree, I was still interested
in finding someone who might accept me for me. I
had looked into many organizations in the USA,
Russia, Ukraine, Philippines, and Asia and Europe
as a whole. But due to my disability, I didn’t
think it would be remotely possible for me to
travel outside the US. Sure there were some
countries rich in accessible accommodations. But
for the most part, the young ladies I would
correspond with came from poorer countries that
have little or no accessible hotels an even worse
no transportation vehicles.
I
continued my search just here in the States.
Joining clubs and meeting a few young ladies at
each. I joined local papers and for a long time
tried the phone services where you could try and
meet people. I was upfront about my disability and
that I used a wheelchair. I did in the course of a
few years meet many women. There were some that I
really like but they didn’t seem to like me.
Others that liked me but couldn’t get past my
chair. And others, which I just didn’t like.
Just because I you are in a wheelchair, doesn’t
mean you have to sacrifice what you are looking
for.
As
I said, I did meet quite a few nice ladies, but I
never really found what I was looking for. There
was one, but she just couldn’t see past my
chair.
I
looked, I talked, I emailed. Outside of the USA
seemed like a long shot. Then after looking here
for quite a few years, I then decided to open my
search worldwide. I was serious now and decided
after finding those who I was interested in, and
those who were interested in me, I would then
worry about accessibility issues.
I
started writing dating services that were
worldwide. I would contact each organization with
a standard letter explaining my situation and if
they thought they could help. Those who responded
felt that some of the young ladies would not have
an issue with my disability. The issue regarding
accessibility was a whole other story. Most of the
countries they had match making services had no
provided disabled services. Hotels were old and
had steps everywhere and accessible transportation
was nowhere to be found. The hotel might be easier
to deal with but my not being able to transfer to
a car made my trip ideas mute.
I
then decided that I might as well keep on trying.
I was disappointed in most of the match making
agencies. They had no answers. I figured that if I
did meet a few ladies, that perhaps they could
help me look into finding the accommodations I
needed.
I
was very aggressive this time in my search. I was
going to find someone. I joined a few agencies
that I found to be interested in me and that I
found to be safe enough to join. No guarantees
though. I put together a bio, describing myself,
my needs and of course my disability. Low and
behold I started receiving many letters.
I
made myself a standard letter to handle the many
responses. I even had to weed out some ladies
because they did not fit my criteria. Pretty cool.
I was swamped in time receiving 3-10 letters a
week. Most sent letters with nice descriptions and
some even included a picture.
My
second letter also ended up being standard letter.
I did do some special responses in those. But I
primarily continued to discuss my disability and
more about myself. In time I had received over
150+ letters for me to look over. I also wanted
the ladies I wrote to have access to the Internet.
I was not interested in waiting
2-plus-weeks to get a response.
I
was worried that I did not find someone who just
wanted a better life and would leave me once they
got here. Money grabbers you can call them. So I
tried asking questions to see if they were. The
ladies that seemed too eager to please and had no
background on my disability, I canned. It was not
easy but I had to be safe.
I
ended up weeding out as I went along. I found
interest in three young ladies from the
Philippines and two from Ukraine. I wasn’t too
sure what to do. The Ukraine ended
Continue >>
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Our
First Date.
Already she had her hands
all over me! ;-)
>>
Continued
up being impossible to find help of any kind. Even though I
was very interested in a lady with two kids, the
possibility of me going there was not good.
I concentrated on the Philippines. What made
things turn quickly to the Philippines was that I
just met a friend who had married a girl from
there. He isn’t disabled but that didn’t
matter. I was already talking with ladies that
after many emails back and forth. I felt more so
comfortable that no I had a friend that could help
me insure that those who I was interested in were
true also. This also ended up being a comfort to
those who I was writing. They too were wondering
if I was who I said I was.
My
wife even stopped writing me because she was
unsure if she was interested and if I was who I
said I was. After we got back in contact, I had
her and my good friend’s wife had her sister
meet for my “future” wife for lunch. The two
only worked a few blocks from each other. This
ended up being a huge comfort to us both. Not that
I wasn’t interested in the other two ladies. It
just seemed meant to be.
In
October of 1999, I visited my soon to be fiancée/wife
and her family on the beautiful island called
Cebu. In the midst of the Philippine Islands (all
7,107 of them) I found my soul mate. I had been
looking on and off for the past few years for my
love.
Now
that we finally found each other and, I was lost
in knowing how I could go visit her. I looked at
myself and said "Your disabled man, no way
can you make it in the PI. With so many obstacles
in the way, how could I go? I decided that no
matter what, I was going.
The
Philippines is a much richer, Americanized and
accessible country. Not everywhere, but the main
cities and hotels are. Even though, no travel
agent had any clue for what I needed to do or
where for me to go. I searched high and low on the
Internet, but I only received partial help from
some kind contacts. After searching and searching
some more I was able to go and have a great and
exciting time.
With
the help of my wife, I was able to find a most
accessible hotel. The transportation wasn’t the
greatest but it was sufficient for my 10-day trip.
A Toyota van fitted with a steep ramp. With a
little extra preparation and the help of my
friend/attendant, I super quad man, jumped the
Pacific Ocean to meet my soul mate.
I
had a most awesome trip that I could have asked
for or expected. To top it all off, I asked Lorena
to marry me while at a restaurant in the hills
overlooking Cebu City. We were engaged on November
5, 1999.Married on August 5, 2000. And Lorena had
the twins on March 20, 2004. What else could I
have ever asked for.
No, it was not easy to travel to a third world
country like the Philippines. It takes time and
extra planning to visit a country like this. But the
end result was well worth it.
The PI isn't nearly
as accessible as the USA. But it is possible to
have an excellent trip with a little extra
preparations and planning. And by finding someone
like myself who has done it before.
Cebu is a great place to visit. So, get your
wheelchair tuned up and ready to go. This site is
more so dedicated to those like myself who use
electric motorized wheelchairs. However, manual
wheelers and the like can benefit from some of
these great ideas and suggestions.
Enjoy
Life!
Come
Visit us
at
our Home Page
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