I like traveling. I like getting out of routine, being somewhere else for a few days, moving differently, seeing different things. Even the build up to a trip feels good. The escapism you feel in anticipation is unmatched. There’s a certain excitement to knowing you’re about to disappear from your normal life for a bit.
Then you get to the airport and suddenly you remember public spaces are only as smooth as the people moving through them. It starts at the gate. They have not called your group yet. You know they have not called your group yet. The screen knows. The app knows. The boarding pass knows. And yet there you are, standing directly in the way.
This is my number one airport pet peeve. 😂
People will hear “Group 1” and somehow decide that means everybody should rise as a community. Now the boarding lane is blocked, the actual group being called has to weave through people, and everybody is pretending they are “just getting ready.”
Getting ready for what?
“Oh, I didn’t know this wasn’t my group.”
Or the never elusive, “is this your group?”
Then comes the overhead bin situation. People love putting their carry-on nowhere near their assigned seat. Yes, technically, you can use available overhead space. I understand the rules. But why are you in seat 52E putting your bag over 10C? Now everyone behind you has to pause, the people near row 10 are confused, the flight attendants have to reverse fill the bins as more passengers board, and when we land, did you really save any time? Boarding already takes long enough, it does not need side quests.
Then the flight happens, and honestly, that part is usually fine. Especially when you have a cool flight crew. You settle in. You lie about finishing up some work. You watch something. You read a paragraph or five of your book. You look around observing what other’s have going on. You eat a snack you absolutely could have bought cheaper before the airport but didn’t so you had to succumb to. You have a moment outside of yourself realizing you’re in the clouds. You remember why you wanted to travel in the first place. For a little while, it feels worth it.
Then we land and before the seatbelt sign is even off, people are already standing. The door is closed. The aisle is full. Nobody is moving. But now half the plane is hunched over under the overhead bins, breathing on each other, committed to standing for absolutely no reason. I understand wanting to get off the plane. Everybody wants to get off the plane. That is literally the one thing we all agree on. But standing early does not create a portal. It just makes everyone uncomfortable sooner.
Once you finally get out of the arrival gate and into the terminal, the irritation fades. You feel the trip again. The routine is gone. The air feels different. Even doing normal things somewhere else feels better. That’s the part that keeps getting me. Travel feels amazing. Getting there just makes me question society a little.
Then you remember this is a connecting flight. 😂