Where do you want to roll today? Accessible travel writer, explorer, and photographer Sylvia Longmire asks herself this question every day as she lives her very active life from the vantage point of a power wheelchair. Despite having been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2005 and being completely unable to walk, she refuses to let that slow her down. With her sense of adventure and camera in hand, she and her electric scooter have set out to see what the world has to offer while her body still lets her. In most cases, it's impossible to truly walk in someone else's shoes. But in The View from Down Here, you can finally see the world through the eyes of a wheelchair user. From the glaciers of Iceland to the ancient ruins of Greece, you'll be amazed at what a person with a physical disability can observe and experience today, despite all the obstacles that still remain. She has captured all the raw emotion of the Western Wall in Jerusalem, the soothing sounds of crashing waves in Crete, and the patience of an elderly accordion player waiting for tips in Ljubljana. After absorbing Sylvia's stunning images from across the globe, you'll want to know how you can get there, too. Sylvia became a full-time power wheelchair user in 2014, and while she traveled extensively prior to her diagnosis, she only started traveling internationally with her electric scooter in 2016. Refusing to wait for someone to be available to accompany her, Sylvia usually travels the world alone. She has documented several of her wheelchair accessible destinations in vivid photographic detail in The View from Down Here, and also writes about their wheelchair accessibility in her travel blog, Spin the Globe.
About the Author: Sylvia Longmire is a service-disabled veteran, mother, author, consultant, entrepreneur, world traveler, and the former Ms. Wheelchair USA 2016. She traveled extensively from an early age and during her time as an Air Force officer and Special Agent. After she was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2005, her ability to walk started to deteriorate. Fortunately, the progression of her MS was slow enough that she could gradually adapt to new ways of living. Sylvia had to learn how to travel with a walker, and eventually with an electric scooter. Her work as a consultant has taken her all across the United States, and her addiction to leisure travel has taken her (and her scooter) as far as the deserts of Dubai and the glaciers of Alaska. She often travels alone, and is continually invigorated by the kindness and offers of help from strangers in every corner of this beautiful world. However, Sylvia is battling the clock. MS is a progressive disease without a cure, and she doesn't know how much longer her body will allow her to travel. So as long as her wallet allows, Sylvia is knocking both domestic and international destinations off her bucket list as quickly as she can She chooses her destinations based on their levels of wheelchair accessibility, as well as whether she'll be able to travel there alone or need a companion. Her goals are twofold: to educate people at home and abroad about the needs - and capabilities - of disabled travelers, and to encourage people with disabilities to leave their fears behind and seek adventure. Through her photography from the vantage point of a seated position, Sylvia hopes to inspire other "wheelies" to create their own photo-worthy moments abroad. When she's not traveling, Sylvia works as a consultant and subject matter expert on Mexico's drug war and border security issues. She has two books in print, Cartel and Border Insecurity, and she has appeared on most major national news and radio networks. She is also an accessible travel agent and owns/manages the Spin the Globe / Travel agency. Sylvia is a single mom to two amazing boys who inspired her to form The PreJax Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides college scholarships to students with MS or who have a parent with MS. All proceeds from the sale of The View from Down Here will be donated to the Foundation.