After Four Years…
Yes, that’s how long it has been since my last international flight or for that matter any travel overseas. To be precise it was since November 2019 just before COVID-19 was officially announced.
I have my personal and very strong opinion about COVID, the pandemic and the restrictions on travel. I won’t get into a discussion or detail here otherwise the post will not be about travel…I’ll say no more.
How did I go? Better than I expected. I did stuff up a few minor things mostly due to stress rather than not remembering how to do things. My mind was always on matters happening back home.
I had read an article a while back how COVID affected a travel writer who for a couple of years didn’t travel because of the restrictions and whether he’d be up to it and if he could remember all the routines and intracacies of international travel. I can tell you this; I didn’t encounter any of those issues although in the back of my mind I was thinking. I’m not sure whether the writer meant the stuff or just made it up so he could write something. Anyway, most of the things that were mentioned in that article would be second nature to anyone who has flown a lot for travel (especially someone who does it for a living).
I guess one could be a little rusty on some points, like the usual stuff:
- how to check-in; whether to do it at the airport or at home online.
- remembering the weight allowance for luggage, whether it’s to be checked-in or taken on board.
- what to do at the security checks and what items must be visually inspected (liquids/gels in see-through plastic bags, laptops, iPads, etc.).
- how to use e-gates and scan the passport.
- what to do if chosen to be body scanned.
- how to board the plane and how and where to stow carry-ons.
- remembering to keep seatbelt on at all times when sitting down.
- how to eat on board without making a mess (in Economy).
- what is allowed as duty free and how much can be brought back home.
- and a few other things…
The writer did mention forgetting how it felt being somewhere foreign where language, culture, customs, food, etc., were different. After being caged up for such a long time you would be wondering what emotions would be stirred up. I do give him credit for this last bit, it would pose a shock to some. I won’t quite say this happened to me as I went where I had been many times before and knew where and what to do but some things weren’t fresh in my mind and I had to experience them again.
Planning travel was another challenge. Figuring out and remembering where to find all the info needed to make travel smooth and then putting it all together and making sense of it. Time consuming process if done without a travel agent/consultant. Then there is the packing. Selecting what to pack and the packing itself and how to best to do this. I was a little rusty but managed to squeeze out enough from memory how to get this done. Packing cubes obviously helped a lot in this regard.
I agree travelling a few years ago would have been a real trial. The extra documentation to carry, the vaccine certificates and other online immigration documentation. Then the PCR/RAT tests, mask wearing and if found positive quarantine, etc. A lot of extra hassles and costs. I chose not to travel back in 2022 although I could have. The restrictions and “so called” mandates were being eased worldwide. So I waited until 2023 but in the end that slipped for a couple of reasons; prices for airfares were a bit expensive and when I wanted to travel I was unable, I had vertigo from an ear problem that would’ve made travel uncomfortable.
Let’s hope what transpired over these years does not happen again; the mandates, directives and restrictions, of which many weren’t necessary. Especially the extra layer of bothersome controls to worry about that added stress to what is sometimes for some the most stressful time during travel the arrival and departure process at airports and the getting from point A to B on the ground.
