The fears of travelling aboard during the global pandemic.

If anything, then the most pronounced emotion I had during the trip was fear. There is an anxious scent in the air. I tried calming down by listening to the cabin crew's announcements. That was the one thing that stood like a limiting factor, everything else seemed so different.

Right after the safety measures were recited, a custom message was announced. "In the case of oxygen masks have dropped down, please remove your surgical masks first and wear the oxygen mask as normal". There it was again, the anxiety. Suddenly, a plane crash wasn't my biggest fear anymore. Normal? There didn't seem to be a normal. It was a subtle reminder that we are still in the middle of a pandemic.

I thought I would have been desensitized to the entire ordeal. I had just made a flight half a year back when things were worse. However, I stood corrected. As I buckled up and looked at the runway pass by, I couldn't help but thinking about all the things that could go wrong. And none of them were to do with the plane.

For one, it is incredibly tiring to make a trip in the pandemic. I had to do a PCR test, an extra COVID insurance and also
time it all correctly. I will have to do all this again when I take my return flight. Upon reaching my destination I would be subjected to a second PCR test. If it were to pop up as a positive, I would be put under quarantine for 14 days.

The timing was the only thing ticking in my head. Tick tock. The first PCR test had to be done within 72 hours of the flight. If it came as positive, I would lose my chance to fly, lose out the premium I paid on the insurance, and the flight ticket. Were it to be negative, but not come in time, the same would occur.

If all goes well and in timely fashion, I make the trip. But if for any reason I test positive in the test that I do upon reaching my destination, I am subjected to a 14 day quarantine and I lose out on the premium and ticket for my return flight. Not to mention the hazards of actually getting infected.

On the return flight I would need a PCR test within 42 hours of the flight, and the cycle of consequences continue...