Fight or flight response

The glory days of air travel are behind us. But with a bit of prep, you can make it to your destination with some sanity left

- SEEMA GOSWAMI

I am always astounded by people of my generation who talk about the 'romance of air travel'. Mostly, because I can't understand what they are on about. I could understand if those a couple of decades older than me waxed eloquent about the 'good old days' when people dressed up to travel by plane, when being an 'air-hostess' was a glamorous profession that attracted the best and the brightest, and when passengers were feted as they flew instead of being penned together like battery hens.

But ever since I began flying I have to confess that I found nothing remotely glamorous about travelling in a steel tube, sitting uncomfortably close to strangers, and being fed re-heated food in Styrofoam containers, washed down with lukewarm Cola. Yes, it is indisputably exciting to arrive in a new destination, but as for the process of getting there, the less said the better.