Europe Trip

On Thursday 13th May 2010, I left Brisbane bound for London via Singapore. On my first day I visited St Pauls Cathedral in London, Westminster, the Borroughs of London, Buckingham Palace and met a couple of Americans from Arkansas. On Friday 14th May 2010 I headed for Brussells by crossing the English Channel (1 hour 15 mins) from Dover to Calais. Brussells a an interesting city. On Saturday 15th May undertook a Brussells tour and saw King Leopold Monument. Cathedral Square and had a look around The rest of the tour was spent in Nuremburg, Prague, Vienna, Venice, Rome, Florence, Switzerland, and France. I will have photos to come with my Facebook page and these will indicate the places I have been too. I enjoyed Paris as there was so much to see there but unfortunately too little time to enjoy and see more. I could not see the Louvre which has a lot to see in it and I had to give the Palace of Versailles a miss as I chose to go up the Eiffel Tower and do a cruise a long the River Seine in Paris instead. I think the English underestimate that France is only 1 hour and 15 mins by Channel Crossing and 20 mins by Euro Star from Dover to Calais. I think London is a different city to Paris and I have visited London before. I don't think the grey cold weather of summer 17 degrees is something that I am used to as a summer's day. I am pleased that I saw Europe and it would be good to see Paris one day again. Every people get the chance they should visit Paris as there is so much to see. I never thought the Eiffel Tower was brown for I thought it was black. I never thought Paris was so big and the inner city surrounded by a ring road system. Within the Ring Road the old Paris existed. In Europe you are often mistaken for being English and one lady I mentioned Australia to in Florence Italy could not place Australia on the map and knew very little about it. Coming from Chicago in the US and being of Asian origin I was somewhat surprised. I now return to Australia after over nighting it in Singapore after a 12 hour 50 min flight. The long distance travel does get to you and jet lag is worse upon return as you are not prepared for it. More photos to come later but for now I have to waste 2 hours in the Hotel Lobby and 4 hours in Heathrow Airport before boarding the plane. I think I will try and get some sleep or rest as I don't like hanging around airports much.

Europe

Today I finished my Europe Tour. Despite being 15 days and visiting several countries, I really enjoyed my visit to Paris. I know not everyone is able to visit Paris but it is a great place. I visited the Eiffel Tower and had a river cruise on the River Seine. I am now in London and despite several attempts to try and log onto my plog and make a post, it appears now I am able to! Traveling through Europe has opened my eyes to many new experiences and sights. My anxiety levels have been controlled and I purchased for myself a swiss automatic watch and an Austrian hat. I have visited London, Brussells, Prague, Vienna, Nuremburg, Rome, Switzerland and finally Paris. So I have seen a lot. I return to Australia tomorrow via Singapore and I hope to travel again sometime soon. It takes me time to save up but when I do travel, it can be enjoyable. I never knew the Eiffel Tower was brown for instance as I thought it was black and I never knew that Paris contained its old city within the section of a ring road around it. I am proud of my achievements and I hope that if anyone gets the chance to visit Paris that they should do so.

Off to Venice

This morning the trip is off to Venice. I am interested in seeing Venice and more importantly the Austrian Alps. Yesterday I had a look around Vienna and purchased an Austrian Hat. The hat itself cost 40 Euro and the feather was 18 Euro. I would have paid 20 Euro for the feather but the best I could do is find it 2 dollars cheaper in Vienna. Vienna is a grand city. It has many beautiful buildings and I visited the Palace in Vienna yesterday and had a cup of coffee and some apple struddle. Last night, I went to a local Austrian dinner venue. Here I had Austrian food and drank some wine and listened to a local Violinist play traditional music. It was great and I did some dancing as well. Venice is overcast with some light cold drizzle and it should be warmer in Italy. It is my turn to sit up the front of the bus this morning on the 7 hour drive to Venice. I have enjoyed the trip so far and the tour guide is American. He is from Philadelphia in the United States. He can speak several languages and has a good knowledge of world history, especially European History. I don't know why Austria and more so Vienna have so much wealth and prominence. It seems to me that a lot of Europeans moved around and Austria was a place to settle. For your information, the Blue Danube is Blue but the Danube Canal flows through Vienna and feeds into the Danube itself. It is a natural canal. I listened to music from Strauss and Mozart on my first night in Vienna and really enjoyed. I am told that Venice is very busy. More updates soon.

Vienna

Yesterday I arrived in Vienna and the countryside was magnificent. I saw a few castles and then went to see a Vieniese Musical last night. Being in Vienna reminds me of the movie The Third Man starring Joseph Cotton. This movie was set in the city just after the end of World War 2 and features Vienna in the background. Today I am off to disover the city and have a look around. Off to see a historical castle and then to attend Vienna in the Woods later this evening.

Prague and the Czech Republic

Yesterday afternoon I crossed into the Czech Republic from Germany. Crossing into the Czech Republic you see a lot of poverty as these people were repressed under communism. Up until the late 1980|s the people of Prague had no contact with the west and anything to do with the west was literally banned. They seem a slavic people and the city has endured many years of hardship. They still use their crowns but the Euro as well. The European Union allows you to cross Europe more easily it seems as I only to show my passport once in Calais. Anyhow am off to Austria later today before another walk around Prague. Last night I had a walk around Prague until 10.30pm. I found Germany a very scenic country and I managed to get a small Steiger and some German Gingerbread which I am currently consuming. I went on a river cruise last night down Prague's River enjoying Czech food and watching a lock work. A lock is a means of allowing or rather I say controling water flow in a river.

The trip so far

Yesterday I arrived in Wurzburg pronounced as Versenberg. Germany is a very scenic country and a country that has endured a lot of pain over the years. It is a very lush country and you often hear the guttrel sound of nicht or ver in accents. The street names are distinct in their pronouncation and sounding as well. I have tried to look for a German souveineir but have only managed a post card so far. Yesterday I cruised down the Rhine which was a Roman area and some Roman Walls still stand. The Architecture in Germany is also impressive and I got to see Frankfurt from a distance. Frankfurt is a modern German city and has an airport similar to Paris in that it apparently crosses over a freeway. I am yet to see this. I am off to Prague shortly and then onto Vienna to see a concert, see Vienna woods. I am hoping to see the Eiffel Tower in Paris and test my limited French with Tour De Eiffel which is how I think you say it in French. Europe is a great place and you only need to show your passport in Calais. As I write this the European Union are trying to convince from what I see in England joining the EU more.

My travels

I thought I would begin my travels with my arrival in London. After spending approximately 7 hours on the plane in stop over in Singapore and then flying 13 hours to London, it all catches up with you. When I got into London yesterday morning, I didn't feel too bad and arriving at 5am. I decided to take a tour of London with the tour company. I got to see the boroughs of London, with some of these being Westminster, and Kensington. I also saw the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace and some of the local attractions. Jetlag is a bit of a pain as your body is trying its hardest to adjust to a new time zone. I managed to stay up to 4pm and had no dinner and slept through until 8pm. Europe are in Daylight Saving at present and the sun is still shining until about 10pm at night. I managed to sleep some more and work a few times before getting up at 4.30am this morning. I don't feel too bad at present and despite sleeping and having a large breakfast, I meet the tour drive or rather driver and head from London to where I board the channel ferry to Calais. It should be a good journey and never going to the continent, it should be good. You can see so much of Australia in England for you need to remember early Australia was an ecapsulation of London in the late eighteenth century. I will keep my travels coming. I got to see St Pauls Cathedral yesterday and its work designed by Christopher Wren http://www.google.fr/search?hl=fr&source=hp&q=christopher+wren&aq=f&aqi=g4&aql=&oq=&gs_rfai= (This needs to be transfered to English translation). Anyhow more updates later.

Assistance on my overseas travels.

I commented to a friend today that having Asperger Syndrome is virtually like being a full time advocate. Wherever you go, you are always aware of how Asperger Syndrome affects you and I have now created a small business card which gives my details, this blog address and my credentials. I am of course working more on acquiring and expanding these but in due course,hopefully these will prove helpful. As I need assistance with navigating the different airline terminals and assistance with the dealings with customs, I now have information that hopefully will make things easier for me and for others with Asperger Syndrome out there. Within Airlines they have a system called "Meet and Assist". I am not sure if adults with Asperger Syndrome or Autism are aware of this but this assistance which sometimes you have to push hard to obtain assistance, allows you to board the aircraft earlier and to reduce significantly over stimulation from navigating customs and other such requirements. The Airline Industry are trained with counseling skills as most customers are nervous boarding aircraft and people with AS are no exception. When I travel long distance flights, I usually ask for an aisle seat at the rear of the plane. Firstly it allows me closer access to the rest rooms and secondly, most people fall asleep and if you need to use the bathroom you don't have to stagger over people to get there. The problem is sleeping on the airplane but usually if you understand the conditions, then you can make accommodations. I consider AS like full on board entertainment as you hear music in your head and your mind is over thinking so you are never stuck with boredom. I often think about how far I am from geographical positions and what countries I am flying over. I also can do some reading and a bit of psychology observing with people on the airplane. I wonder how many times this person has been married, I wonder if this other person likes cats and if the other person is a teacher etc. Also you can choose the type of on board entertainment you prefer and watch some movies on the plane. You have people looking after you also so you don't have to worry about preparing meals etc. It always surprises me how when you ask for "Meet and Assist" that someone comes to you with a wheel chair. It seems that disability is always defined as physical. As I sat with a friend at the Mt Cootha Summit, he told me about his walking expedition in Spain and how he is walking 900kms. That is almost the distance between Brisbane and Sydney. Aspies can travel overseas and hopefully in time more will be able to do this but please keep your eye on my Facebook page for photos overseas. I have a good memory with dates and I am hoping to document some of the things I see on my trip. Hopefully my Business Cards will also promote awareness. More news to come when I get a chance to find a computer on my journeys.

Anxiety Management

As an Aspie I find that anxiety comes in waves and often I need to tackle anxiety before it consumes me. At Minds and Hearts which helps adults and children with Asperger Syndrome by way of counseling, I am working on ways of overcoming anxiety and navigating the NT (Neuro Typical) world. http://www.mindsandhearts.net/ At the UQ Asperger Group yesterday, a student with AS mentioned to me the difficulties he had with being an Aspie on campus. The University to him was a large environment and he said he felt inferior and found it hard to find acceptance, tolerance and understanding. I informed him of my own experiences of being an adult at the University of New England where I too encountered the same problems. I struggled a lot with depression and social isolation. Fitting in was not easy and making friends was a difficult and often frustrating challenge. Failing my first year of University didn't help either as I had no previous academic experience and the end of 1994 felt like a severe let down for me. The importance of the group at UQ is to allow for a supportive and friendly environment for adults with Asperger Syndrome and it is good to see such a group in existence despite the hard work involved in getting it off the ground. For adults like myself, anxiety is often a problem. It can be debilitating and something that does not go away easily. Often for adults, heightened levels of anxiety causes the inability to function and finding ways of dealing with it is not easy. Deep breathing exercises are but one way of trying to reducing it and furthermore visualizing places where you feel calm and relaxed. I have found my anxiety levels are more manageable as I am going away tomorrow and I am feeling more relaxed than previously. I think it feels like a cross over between the last day of having to work and the next day tomorrow, starting my holiday. Both the airline and the tour group are aware of my Asperger Syndrome so if I get lost or need help with navigation, then hopefully I will be able to get some help. Hopefully, other adults with AS too will be able to travel and not feel held back by the difficulties of having AS. I am proud of my achievements and the advocacy so far. A long way to go but more information getting out there. Hopefully more adults with work together on supporting AS advocacy for now and the future. I don't know everything and I don't intend to but AS I feel is a major area of where awareness is needed and trying to to my best.

Autism Awarness Party - Australia

For Australia to introduce legislation or to have representation of Autism Awareness in Australia some necessary changes and obstacles would need to be overcome. The matter of electing a member to parliament to represent people and families affected by Autism would be a big challenge. Firstly, the person would more than likely need to be a Senator and perhaps an ACT Senator. The problem with the Australian system of government is that the lower house would be harder to obtain a seat. This is because of the competition and the fact that the major parties have dominance and more support and financial aid etc. Secondly, a member from the lower house would not really have the power to change or have power in relation to Autism awareness. Therefore briefly a lower house seat would not be a likely option. If the member was a Senator and could hold the balance of power or have a presence in the Senate, then legislation which is passed in the lower house and then enters the upper house could then be altered or raised more. For instance the Senator would raise the issues of Autism in the Upper house the Senate and depending on the power of this individual, issues such as Health could then have Autism raised as an issue. For example the person from the Autism Awareness Party would raise questions to the Minster concerned or the Minister Representing the Minister for Disabilities in the Senate concerning Autism. The member would also need to ensure that funding and support in relation to Autism would be raised and awareness addressed where necessary. Although my example may not be a plausable one, the issues of Autism Awareness need to be raised at a federal level somehow as this is the only way to get Autism on the cards within a national scale. Australia wide there would need to be 500 or more supporters for such a party and there would need to be key people to create and ensure that such a party functions. If Australia is to reach the levels of what has been recently seen in the UK with the Autism Bill then what can we do as people who are affected by Autism? Firstly, we need to be open minded about Autism and the ways we need to make the government aware of the struggles and difficulties associated with Autism. Adults are one example as adults confront the day to day challenges of struggling with Autism and dealing with the challenges and difficulties. Perhaps if everyone wrote to their local member and petitions were signed in individual constituencies, then we could make a start. The only way to get awareness out there is to begin with some approach. Write to your local member or get a petition and present it to your local member with the real hard facts about Autism. Then those interested in obtaining awareness at a national level, then perhaps looking at a party such as Autism Awareness Party may be the way to go. The party needs to be run well and furthermore, funding, the legalities etc need to be taken into consideration. Having adults who are able to function can provide advocacy in areas of need and areas to overcome ignorance. These are just some thoughts and perhaps others may have some ideas?

Posts from adults with Asperger Syndrome

I thought about the idea of other adults posting their experiences to this blog and I am trialing this as a new and unconventional means of promoting awareness. Should you wish to post in reply to this thread of your own experiences, please don't hesitate to do do. You may want to write about the following Your personal experiences of having AS (any length acceptable). The difficulties you encounter or the skills you have already acquired or possess. Where you feel more awareness may be needed What it is like being an adult with Asperger Syndrome Anything you may wish to write about that may help raise awareness. Regards Garry Burge

Trip overseas

Yesterday, I met with my Psychologist at Minds and Hearts and asked him if he could write up a letter to assist me on the tour I am commencing in Europe on Thursday 13th May. The assistance will be to help me get through the many hurdles of terminals and in transits that I find difficult and secondly assistance on the tour so that I can be better understood and hopefully assisted on the tour. The tour I am doing is for 15 days and is called Cosmopolitan Europe. I have worked hard to save up for this trip and I the tour commences in London and I visit the following locations. Day 1 I am in Belgium, then I depart for Germany to Wurzburg. I then head for Prague via Nuremberg to the Czech Republic. I spend some time there and then head to Austria and to Italy and then to Switzerland before reaching Paris and France. I finally return to England and I return back to Australia and over night in Singapore before my return. For anyone interested in what I am doing and seeing, you can find out by visiting the following link. http://www.cosmostours.com.au/cosmopolitan-europe_tourcode-5151_season-2010_tourid-144377_minor-58 I am looking forward to a break for I have been involved full on with Asperger Syndrome awareness and I have also been in contact with NAS National Autism UK. In a future visit, I am thinking of visiting the UK and perhaps some adults with AS may also like to come a long but mainly I intend to visit to raise awareness of the situation in Australia where a great deal more work needs to be made available. I will be taking pictures on the tour and hopefully visiting some interests sites a long the way.

Overseas Trip

I am looking forward to my up and coming overseas trip to Europe. As I have worked so hard and feel burned out at the moment, I really need a break from Australia. I get frustrated with the way some people here do not understand Asperger Syndrome and for me I am affected by AS in every situation. I find small talk very difficult and I get tired of anxiety and having to manage it all of the time. Furthermore, I get frustrated with not being able to get anywhere at UQ. Everything I try and undertake either meets with disappointment or I am told what cannot be done. The hierarchy is difficult and you never win with it. As I am going to Minds and Hearts, I am going to get help with navigating the social world as I am largely confused with people, events and social interactions around me. My mind always is looking for errors and tends to sabotage things a lot. I have just purchased an Autism Alert Card and hopefully this will arrive soon. As it is in a different country, I received a phone call to confirm my credit card details. I get tired of having to explain to people how situations can be difficult for me. The Autism Card will be hopefully a way of showing people what affects me so that I don't have to explain it all of the time. Even if I don't mention AS people don't get me anyhow so everything is overwhelming at the moment. Although I am not able to undertake further study, it is back to the drawing board again to find out what Garry is supposed to be good at as measurement of success is determined on what you are good at isn't it? I am looking forward to going overseas and seeing new things. Going overseas is also a means of coming out of your comfort zone and pushing your cognitive abilities. You don't have to go to University to show how smart you are as intelligence is defined in different ways. I just don't seem to find a niche in UQ and finding another job isn't going to be easy either but working with Minds and Hearts will hopefully give me some ideas and suggestions. Being an Aspie guy there are so many expectations on you and I think life can be very challenging and difficult at times and you can only give things your best. At least having a job gives you the chance to have a holiday!!

When things don't work out

I was informed this afternoon that undertaking a Masters/Phd Thesis was going to be a real struggle and I have come to terms with this. My thesis topic was "The Difficulties in navigating the social world for an adult with Asperger Syndrome both socially and economically and the ways society can better understand these difficulties". To be honest, I am pioneering as an adult with AS and I am finding this difficult and the other adults behind me the same. What I wanted to research was the early socialisation process of children before they become adults and how the education system seems to not be conducive to adults. The main problem being that as children, Aspies don't pick up the socialization process which affects them later in adulthood. Furthermore, adults with AS are disadvantaged later in life. From my own personal experiences I have a learning disability because I find it hard to process information at times and to be able to read and comprehend information. Success is not about what job I have or whether I have a Doctor to my name or whether I am some high profile person but more importantly my own struggles and personal success. Despite my appearance, I have suffered a lot over the years but I have been fortunate to have traveled. I don't regard myself as intelligent but more so capable. I have a lot of strength and this has helped get me through but as I get older in life, having to battle gets harder and I need help. This is why I have turned to Minds and Hearts. I have also informed Queensland Health that AS is a life long condition and counseling needs to be ongoing! Aspies are people who get by as best they can in life and seldom we are really understood. The measurement of success is not always something that marks a person's standing in life and it is a perception of NT's that this is so. I have had critics in my life and people that don't understand me for who and what I am but frankly I don't care anymore. I just accept life is tough and that's that. I know a lot of other adults are the same and often Aspies survive as best they can for we know that if we aim for things they will never really befall us. I am going to look at purchasing an Autism Awareness Card because I get sick of saying "I need help as I have a disability" when I am in a shopping centre and get stressed, anxious and overwhelmed in a shopping centre. I get tired of people staring at me and thinking I am cracking a joke in their minds when I say I have a disability and I need help. The Autism Card seems the only solution and some people may help and others not but at least I can do is try. Many Aspies will be unable to find perhaps paid work and why doesn't society listen and be concerned? People's lives are affected by having no support and understanding. Asperger Syndrome in adults is a reality and people need to take notice because adults with AS have intelligence but not the same as NT's. We may not succeed in employment, nor in universities or in schools but this does not make us intellectually inferior. IQ tests are to me a heap of crap because a person's intelligence cannot be measured in a timed experiment. Do you ever think of the people who were deemed stupid that actually succeeded in life given the opportunity? Albert Einstein was a write off at school and look to where he got. Dr Tony Attwood has to stop saying that people with AS are geniuses for some of us struggle and we struggle hard and placing expectations on us does not help us. Some Aspies just want a job and understanding and this is not always possible for people don't understand. Children with Asperger Syndrome become adults with Asperger Syndrome and speaking from personal experiences and without a university doctorate or masters or whatever, I can speak my mind and experiences which are the truth. What exactly is success and intelligence for I am beginning to wonder myself. Perhaps my intelligence is not within an NT definition and that of other Aspies.

Asperger Syndrome Advocacy

In Australia and New Zealand Asperger Syndrome awareness is something that needs a major overhaul. Compared to the United Kingdom and the United States, Australia I believe is lagging. Awareness is starting to appear slowly as there are now advertisements showing Autism but Asperger Syndrome in adults is something that is still largely unknown. I find very little understanding of Asperger Syndrome in adults and within my own experiences, there is still a major area of ignorance. The reality of the situation is that Lorna Wing brought the previous studies of Hans Asperger to western attention in 1981. It took a decade or more for her findings to creep into society and for people to hear the diagnostic criteria of Asperger Syndrome. Asperger Syndrome is starting to be picked up in children and early intervention is important in trying to assist and modify intervention but sadly there is still a large percentage of adults within the community that may be in denial or unaware they are affected by Asperger Syndrome. What then can be done? The only way to promote awareness of Asperger Syndrome is to encourage and persist with advocacy. I grew up and evolved through an education system which adopted the dreaded TE Score. This system really placed false expectations on young adults to reach a number as a target for career choice. If a person obtained 990 which was the highest on the score, they could then enter professions and the lower the score, the lower the profession. For those of us who did not adjust to this dreaded system, then we were considered academic right offs or having no brains. As you can imagine such a system placed pressures, expectations and even wrongful labels on people's abilities. Some adolescents crept through the cracks to have no hope later. The school system knew nothing about Autism and the latter stages of my being in the dreadful educational system, Autism did have some mention. Autistic people were seen as either naughts or freaks and sadly some were punished as they exhibited sensory issues and as you can imagine people like myself suffered a battering and self esteem issues crept in. Asperger Syndrome advocacy is important for adults exist in silence. Nobody understands why we are different and the socialisation process within the educational system earlier has placed high and unrealistic demands on adults on the Autistic Spectrum. People need to understand Autism before they can judge a person at face value. Within employment, adults with AS are being judged at face value and society has socialised and conditioned people in thinking that difference or eccentricity is somehow odd and deviant. Advocacy is very slow and I for one want to see more awareness as I am tired of being wrongly labeled or negatively stereotyped. The other difficultly for adults with AS is that NT (Neurotypical People) want to try and make us think and be like them and if we don't then rejection occurs as a result. People with AS have different wiring and we cannot help the way we think and behave in society but most of us look to counseling as a means of improving or adjusting. Over the years I have tried to publish and sadly nobody or no publishers seem interested in what I have to say. I have written to Asperger Syndrome and Autistic Media and I cannot understand why my contributions are ignored or overlooked. Being an adult with AS surely you would think that what I have to say would help assist in raising awareness of AS in the community? I have even written a book and Jessica Kingsley Publishers seem disinterested. I am also looking at writing a Master's Thesis on Asperger Syndrome and this may occur but again only time will tell. I can only promote advocacy where and when I can to avoid burn out. The message needs to get out there and the negative stereotyping and judging at face value needs to be looked at and approached differently.

Dealing with anxiety and social situations

This afternoon I caught up with a friend I haven't seen in 3 and a half years. Being on the north side of Brisbane, I realised I needed to travel some distance and furthermore both he and his fiancee had their engagement party. In order to be at their house I relied on GPS but I can never handle time effectively. I either get to someone's place too early or stress out about being there on time. As I get anxious around people and more so in social situations, I thought that I would spend some time prior to arrival at my friend's house undertaking some deep breathing exercises. Often anxiety is fueled by shallow breathing and the deep breathing allows more oxygen into the blood stream and to the brain. The technique I used for deep breathing is deep breathe through the nose and out through the mouth for 30 seconds. If it takes longer, I try to deep breath to allow for a physiological change and reduce anxiety. I was proud of myself in this situation for despite spending some time in a local park nearby, I encouraged myself to breathe deeply to reduce the anxiety and allow for better cognitive function. By the time I got to my friend's place the anxiety was under control and there was none of this racing thoughts and feeling tense business. I could handle the socialising for some time but I often get confused by people's comments and whether or not they are trying to joke or be serious. My friend though was a good host and ensured to the best of his ability that I was made welcome and feeling somewhat tired socially, I left early so that I could return home again and not have too much mental strain while driving. I also cut my own hair which I have only done a few times of late, well in the last few years. I got sick and tired of incompetent barbers who don't know how to cut hair and when it is long it is hard to manage, so I thought I would cut it myself. Using a couple of mirrors and a electric hair trimmer, I reduced my hair down to a number 3 cut. Now I don't have to worry about paying money or having hair cuts I am not happy with. So another achievement accomplished. My Masters Thesis is on the back burner at the moment while I do some reading and plan for my overseas trip. Social situations are daunting and difficult, but I try as best I can but anxiety is something I need to control. I am going to do more exercise and breathing techniques which I can only do and control to overcome it.