Monk in Manchester!

We just got back from a 5 day trip to Manchester, England. A lot of travel for an amazing treat! To meet the new baby in our family.

I hail from an amazing remote home in the middle of a field in Northern Scotland, our epic journey started with a 2.5 hour bus ride to our nearest train station in Aberdeen. Now I'm pretty used to this and if it's empty we sit in the wheelchair bay so I might have room to spread out.

From the bus station we have to walk through Union Square Shopping Centre till we get to the train station. From there we road trains for six hours, so its a good job I can empty myself on command. The first train, through ScotRail, was about 3.5 hours and was familiar and easy. Once again, because of My size we sit in the disabled carriage to make sure I have the room to work and settle comfortably. A nice man came on in his electric wheelchair and we talked off and on through most of the trip sharing the space.

We had to change trains once at Edinburgh Waverly Train Station. It's so busy there that Alison always arrange Assistance to meet us and help us find our connecting train. Which means I only have to focus on Alison's health and not worry about where and what's going on. There were a lot of distractions with dogs, suitcases and people. We took two lifts and got onto our LNER train to Manchester Piccadilly Station. LNER only had one disabled car and it was a first class one. This had happened on our previous trip. So we made ourselves comfortable and thought nothing of it.

Due to Alison's eyesight, they get free travel on buses and trains in Scotland. When we reached the boarder to England, They remembered that we'd need to buy tickets. In the past they have done this on the train. But this time the ticket inspector charged us £92 for an hour of travel!! On the way home they bought before we boarded, with Northern Trains, and was only charged £45 for the same journey. Alison looked into it and found that LNER charged us for sitting in First Class! Despite them explaining there was only the one carriage to them. This left Alison feeling incredibly discriminated against.

Alison has called for LNER to put on more disabled carriages or for them to not charge first class rates to the disabled people who need them!

We arrived into Manchester Piccadilly and found our way to the exit. This involved a lift and three moving walkways. I have never seen or been on these moving walk ways before but got great praise for navigating them well for my first time. The station was having a busy Friday night. Luckily Alison's boyfriend found his daughter and her partner; who led us out. Last time we visited I came in contact with a large statute which worried me but this time I walked right past it as I knew it wasn't something for me to worry about it. There were restaurants everywhere and people milling around. We walked a bit and hopped into our taxi when it arrived. When we got to our hosts new flat, I waited till I was given the cue to jump out. This sounds silly but with my handlers reduced movement it can take them awhile to get my leash ready. I was walked and given a relief break after all that travel, indicated with a cue word so I know where is ok to toilet.

Their flat is on the second floor so I had to be really careful with the stairs. I'm trained to help Alison on stairs and they needed it! they seemed pretty sore from the train trip. When we got in, we met the new addition! A beautiful baby boy! Totally not fussed by a big dog like me being around. I'm used to babies (human puppies) and children and lay down with a treat after my gears was off. The humans ate take away and watched TV to relax and catch up, discussing the baby. I tucked into my dog food and got lots of treats for my hard work.

The next morning, we went for a walk down the hill to catch a bus to a Arndale Shipping Centre. The bus was great but busy. It's always interesting to talk to new people. People are constantly asking about Me when I'm working. Alison's boyfriend is good at helping answering questions to take some the stress. Thankfully no one tries to touch me or make kissy noises, but they all want to know Me breed. I love hearing comments on how we trained I am! Alison Works hard with me.

We got off the bus and had a bit of a walk through busy streets in the heart of Manchester to get into the shopping centre. To work an assistance dog in a mall takes a lot of training. I have had extensive training to cope with this kind of level of distraction. I even alerted to Alison's pain and took them to sit on some stairs (no empty bench near by). The one thing I will say for that shopping centre is that there are no seats! I lay at their feet and watched them intently waiting for them to improve. Staff did walk by but none asked if they needed further help. After 10 minutes Alison felt able to walk again. We had no trouble whatsoever in cramped shops bursting with Christmas items and people. The owners watched us and gave us compliments. We went into Menkind and a Warhammer shop amoung others. In between we waited at changing rooms while the baby was made comfortable.

The people of Manchester were wonderful about assistance dogs. we heard no distracting sounds aimed at us, no one tried to feed me and no one pet me without permission. It was a breath of fresh air because the city was busy and I needed all my attention on Alison.

When we left we found an outside Christmas Fair of sorts. Lots of people at food stalls and games. Alison and I even got a photo with Santa! I of course was more interested in the food venders than Santa though. We ended up not buying any food and made our way to a park to sit and talk for awhile. I was given my cue that mean I could sniff around and I did while having a pee. I settled against Alison's legs to watch people and dogs running around. Despite being taking a break I knew I wasn't totally off till my gear came off later. I always get my "dog time" and I'm willing to wait!

We caught a bus home, climbed the hill and chilled for a few hours. Public Access takes a lot of mental stimulation and most dogs are always shattered afterward. The next day we all had a day off; chilling with our family. I got some good quality play/walk time in the woods.

On Monday morning we were recharged. After some cute photos with the baby we hugged everyone and left. We took an Uber to the train station. Then there was some sitting around because our train was cancelled. We were diverted to Preston and from there got a NorthRail train to Glasgow. It was a bit cramped but we got a nice seat and I was able to chill. Alison was hoping to avoid Glasgow since we would have to walk between the train stations to board our next one.

Glasgow turned out to be very manageable despite Alison's current state of health. Some clever council person posted maps every 100 yards to keep travellers on the right path from Central Train Station to Queen Street Train Station. We could have taken a bus as well but it was nice to stretch our legs. It was busy due to the streets being the in the main shopping part of town, but an easy walk. From there we hopped the first train into Stirling.

Alison had booked a night at a Stirling Premier Inn so we could meet their son for dinner. There is construction around Stirling Train Station so we had to walk under scaffolding and around pot holes till we got to the bridge. Thankfully the lifts were working and we crossed with no problems. I always enjoy looking through the glass at the trains as we walk over. We had absolutely no problems checking in or with our stay there. Staff were very happy to have us and we even had a cooked breakfast at the Beefeater restaurant in the morning.

As always, Alison's boyfriend packed some choice bits on napkins for me and I was fed them in our room. Alison says I will get a bit of human food as an extra reward for being good at restaurants but nothing at the table.

When I travel I know I get to choose a soft toy as a memento. I am crazy about unicorns but the card shop we stopped at in Stirling didn't have any. BOOOOO. I was told I could have something and I walked right past a few stuffed toys and chose a black Scotty dog in a tartan vest. This was my first black coloured toy I normally prefer a lot of colour! I only touched that toy and happily took it to Alison to take it to the counter to buy it. At Weatherspoon's I pulled it out of the bag (leaving everything else in there) and cuddled it during dinner.

At the Weatherspoon's we met Alison's son. It was so good to see him though he could only stay for a hour and a half. After dinner; Alison, her boyfriend, and I walked to the Stirling Vue Cinema where we got tickets to see Black Adam. I slept through the film. It's not often we go to the cinema but I'm always very good and not bothered by the noise and flashing screen. Sometimes in quiet scenes people wonder who is snoring!! But shhh! Don't tell them! They seemed to find the film entertaining and then we walked to the hotel. All three of us passed fell into a deep sleep.

The next morning we had our breakfast and left for Aberdeen. ScotRail was great as always and we arrived in at a good time. We walked through Union Square Mall from the train station to the bus station. We had an hour to wait so I went for a toilet break and leg stretch walk. We stood in line at burger king, ordered at the counter and found a table next to the wall for us to eat at. Alison removed one chair and then told me to lie there. While they ate I watched pigeons walk around the floor. One bird actually went up to my nose! does that make me a Disney prince then? Then we got on our bus.

By the time we got home it was dark outside. Alison had had to wear their protective glasses through most of the bus ride. Light can be blinding for them. Their boyfriend led the way and I stuck to Alison's pace and helped them home. I did get very excited when I saw my favourite patch of ground and I snuffed all the new smells and marked my territory! When we got in I reunited with the cat Ragnar, we gave glad cries to see each other. My gear came off and I was blessed with a treat. Which meant the journey was finally over and I commenced zoomies for a few minutes. A very happy boy!!

Stay tuned for training blogs where I will go over training special Public Access tasks. Please let me know any topics you are interested in! I'm here to help.