For me a trip to India has always meant excitement, fun, vacation and meeting family. From booking the tickets to making lists and then shopping and packing and planning has always been fun. I have been living out of India for 25 years now and it was always the same but this time it was totally different.
COVID changed life for everyone, we all got something good and bad out of it. We were in India in Jan 2020 so it was okay for a year or so. I didn’t crave a visit and COVID and work from home gave me more chance to connect with everyone. FaceTime and Zoom became an integral part of our life. I could video chat with my mom everyday.
But after a year and a half COVID fatigue hit everyone and things went downhill. This fall many things changed and we were impacted by it too. My parents decided to go to our home town for some time and my mom didn’t do very well health wise. During that time I just got a thought and I decided to keep my fears aside and decided to go see her.
This trip was different, not many plans are made, not many lists were exchanged, I didn’t talk much about my India trip and shopping was mostly from Costco and Amazon.
Everything had some kind of dullness but slowly it warmed up. I could overcome my anxiety and decided to enjoy my time with family. Some of the friends who have been to India during this time were a big help and very supportive. One of the doctor friend gave me hospital masks with instructions.
Finally the day came, it was an 11 PM flight so I had the whole day.
After work two friends came and it was a much needed break. The tea together was comforting and and very relaxing. One of them made yogurt rice for my dinner at the airport. If you are planning to travel you must do this. Take food from home and eat before the flight so you are not rushing to eat when everyone is eating on the plane. You can eat after everyone is done and masked. Also get the surgical masks, your glassed won’t fog as much.
With no kids at home the house was much cleaner and calmer . The fridge didn’t have much to clean.
We left home to pick up Ajey, spent some time there before we headed out to the airport which was very close.
When I walked in I was shocked to see no lines . I was 3 hours early for the flight but still had never seen this airport so quiet . My checking in was a breeze. My home weighing scale was perfect so there wasn’t any issue with the suitcases. They were just right 50.5 and 51 lbs :) I got out of the airport with the boys. Ashish got the parking right outside the entrance , so unusual. We could see how COVID has changed everything for travelers . No one in their right mind would travel right now a friend had said. Well I was trying to keep my mind in the right place. The weather was so perfect which I didn’t notice till then. I am glad I went out with them.
Security was totally empty too, I have traveled so many times to India but I had never seen anything like this. Empty airport. Well I am not complaining, having the whole area to myself was helpful. I could make phone calls while walking and not worrying about social distancing. The flight was easy and smooth and felt very safe.
Dubai Airport was empty, safe and comforting. The break was short and Duty free shops are open.
Another post about the Bangalore airport Saga. is Here
My sisters came to pick me up at the airport, waited patiently when it took more than 2 hours to come out.
Glad you took the plunge of traveling to visiting loved ones across the continents ❤️
ReplyDelete