It was my first.The first plane journey of my life,the one which came at almost the right time.The
enjoyment it offered was tremendous and was only comparable to that felt by a child on his first
sky-ride at a fair.
I got an opportunity to visit my brother staying in pune and from Delhi, plane was the best
option. I have heard of plane journey experience from relatives,friends which excited me for
this prospect. Planes have occupied a larger place in present day world with their fast reach
and smoothness they offer.But for a passer-by the sound of a plane taking-off or into landing
looks horrible. In fact I considered plane being about to fall in such cases.Hard landing in
recent months also bothered me in my plan but to be rational it is actually as safer as any other
means.
So I booked a ticket with Indigo service and at a reduced price as it was a much advanced
booking.The misconception that credit cards are essential was gone , as my debit card was
handful here.I prepared for the journey and wore new clothes to make the event special.I
also considered chances of carrying my luggage as cabin baggage or check-in baggage.I finally
opted for a carry bag and a suitcase with weight in mind.
The journey started as I left for airport -well ahead of schedule take-off time -by DTC bus
with original plan to alight at Intermediate point and would take auto from there.But drama
unfolded then as long rains in the region caused heavy road traffic jam on airport road ahead.
The buses started scrawling and I took no time to decide to take auto for the better.Suddenly
clock seemed faster to me and it was now only left to auto wala to make my flight but he
couldn't be faster than the massive jam.Finally I reached airport .
The view of airport was spectacular.I went inside and searched for Indigo Check-in counters
after the first official check at entry.The counters were visible but the way to it looked confusing
with ropes barricades guiding directions.I reached one of them and was attended by a
"Chinki"-actually Check-in crew of Indigo -in a dangerous make up.I negotiated with her as
my suitcase was tagged for check-in luggage and my boarding pass allocated to me.
As I moved forward for the security check-in,I was calculating that on my return journey I am
eligible to carry whole luggage-that being weighed as less than 8 kg norm.Delhi police vigilantly
followed the procedures as I was frisked and my bag too had to be passed through a detector
with mobile switched off inside it .
I took deep breathe to celebrate the passing of mandatory exams of the airport system and
found myself in front of the runway.It was really like a bus stand with red blue planes ,some
already parked ,some adjusted by their pilot.I sat there and prepared myself to board the
flight by emptying water bottle before gulping some of water.I looked for toilet directions and
went there to empty my bladder before flying .The announcement system there seemed logical
as I heard of the start of boarding for my flight ..sense of excitement filled in.
