Flying In The New Normal
Buying a ticket, boarding a plane, and traveling isn’t the same anymore.
In the past, buying a ticket was something you do it out of joy and desire for discovering new places, going on a business trip, or just fly from one home to another. The trip schedules today are much different than 4 months ago.
While Covid19 was destroying the world I was hiding in my parent’s house, however, I knew there will be a time in the future when I will have to buy a ticket and return to Italy.
Italy was one of the worst-hit countries during the entire pandemic. The numbers were so scary that there were some moments when I was thrown into desperation thinking that I will never leave. You can read a bit about my desperation in this post My Flight Is Delayed.
While waiting in Macedonia I was faced with yet another problem, the numbers in Macedonia skyrocketed in only a week and the country was blacklisted from entering the EU.
However, I was allowed to enter Italy because I have a valid residence permit.
And it went like this…
Preparing for the trip.
Besides the usual packing preparing for the trip was confusing and scary. I had to make sure I packed enough hand sanitizer, masks, and gloves. On the other side, I had to make sure that I had all declarations, permits, regulations printed, and filled in.
The border control is more strict than ever and in my case, coming from high risk, the non-EU country was a true challenge.
The airport.
I was asked to arrive 3h before the flight so there is enough time to go through all the procedures.
Arriving at the airport was as per usual but once we were there, my parents were allowed to stay only 1 min, take my suitcases from the car, hug for 10 seconds and leave.
Once I was left alone at the airport, I was not allowed to stay outside for a long time and when entering the airport I was asked to show my ticket to the security, sanitize my shoes and hands, and go through a thermal camera.
After this procedure, I was inside the airport.
The lines in front of the check-in desks were long and there was the obligatory 2 m distance and we had to wear masks and gloves at all times.
Once I found my friends and it was my turn to check in my bags I was asked to show a ton of documentation including my residence permit and special documents from the embassy.
The passport control and the check-in were smooth and fast mainly because there weren’t many people and the lines were not long.
Overall, the cleanliness at the airport was good and more strict than usual.
On the plane.
Besides the compulsory rule to always wear your mask, there weren’t any special rules in the Wizz Air plane.
The cleanness was like usual, the passengers were allowed to sit next to each other and the service was the same.
Arriving in Italy.
Once the plane landed in Italy, the usual procedure started. The passengers disembark the plane, there is the passport control and you take your suitcases. One more thermal camera and you are out of the airport.
What surprised me was that the passport control was as normal and they didn’t mention anything about isolation. They took the passport, residence permit, and a declaration form that you have entered the country.
I and my friends were really confused and scared and we stepped aside to ask once again and make sure that we need to go to insolation.
Going home and 14 days isolation.
Going home has to be with private transportation or taxi and you are not allowed to take public transport.
Have you traveled recently? What was your experience? Please share it in the comments below.
