I have been thinking about the moment for more than a year now. Being able to travel again internationally and being able to travel without the need of being quarantined. The joy of landing in another country without being subjected to medical testing, where you only had to declare things you had carried in your bag.
When New Zealand announced the bubble a few weeks ago with Australia, I was pretty happy. Pretty happy does not describe the emotion. Overjoyed. That’s the word. I knew I had to make the trip. Before something goes wrong again, it’s an ever-changing situation. We are still in a pandemic. I hope the whole world gets back to normal as soon as possible. I pray.
I checked with the team and my reporting manager. It had been a long time. My usual weekend visits would no longer be enough. It had to be an extended stay. Maybe a week. I was hoping it would be a week. I am thankful that I got permission to work remotely from another country for two weeks: next thing, tickets.
Travel had to be expensive. Airlines have not been operating for more than a year now. They had to make it so that they balance their cost and recover from their losses. I knew it would be this way. I had saved up for this exact reason. The tickets were twice as expensive as my usual trip costs, but that did not stop me from clicking the “submit payment” button. I remember smiling ear to ear as I clicked the button. Giving away so much money did not feel bad. Overjoyed.
I am looking forward to travelling with James and getting to meeting Mayur again. It’s going to be a great trip.
