My name is Richard Lawrence and I work at Mencap as a Project Support Assistant. I am telling my story about my first time flying on a plane. The reason I was going to Northern Ireland was to do some evaluation with Carrickfergus Senior and Crossroads Gateways. This is part of the work I am doing for the Gateway Beacon Project.
I was very nervous before I went on a plane because I have never flown before. I chose an aisle seat which helped me to calm my nerves. Ruth, who supports me at Mencap, suggested to me that I should have a sweet when the plane goes up and down to stop my ears popping. My ears hurt at first but felt better after a while.
At Gatwick Airport I went through the security system. I got my hand cream taken off me when my bag went through the x-ray scanner. I felt a bit nervous and tense when I went through the metal detector, but I was happy that I didn’t set off the buzzer.
When the plane took off I felt butterflies in my stomach. I enjoyed looking at the clouds and the sky out of the window. The plane was bigger than I thought it would be and we sat in the middle. On the way back I felt calmer and I slept all the way back. Ruth had to wake me up in Gatwick.
I enjoyed myself in Northern Ireland and my favourite part was talking to people about their Gateway Club.
The Carrickfergus Senior Gateway Club has moved to a new venue. It is much bigger than their old venue as they can use lots of different rooms. I spoke to people from the Crossroads Gateway Club, which is a new club for 18- 30 year olds about what they enjoy doing and what they would do if they were not part of the Gateway Club.
I also liked exploring Belfast and seeing Carrickfergus Castle. The castle was big and I enjoyed learning about the history. I liked being in the fresh air in Belfast and the weather was nice. It made me feel calm, relaxed and good about myself.
A few things I noticed are different were the money looks different, the television channels are different and people’s accents are not what I am used to. I had to listen carefully to what people said but by the end of my trip I got used to hearing the different accents.
I enjoyed my trip and would like to fly again. To other people who have never flown before, I would say to prepare something to calm your nerves before you fly. Listen to music through your headphones or suck some sweets. I was scared at first but at the end I thought “I did it!”.
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