Airplanes.
Back in summer in 2010, my family and I went back to Japan to visit relatives for 10 days. Of course, we took a plane. To be specific, the Japanese Airlines (JAL for short, apparently). I'm not a big fan of jet lag (hell, I think no one is), but what really gets to me is the plane ride. Take off, the random and sudden turbulence, the constant uneasiness of being in the air, the creepy (but awesome) service, and landing.
Take off and landing, oh god. I'm sure you, the reader, are just fine with these, but me? Sure, I look all calm, leaning back in my seat, but look at my hands. They're literally GRIPPING the armrests. And once take-off or landing is over, I don't let go of the armrests for a few minutes. I just sit there. Traumatized. I never get over it. I never will. It doesn't help to have turbulence on the flight too. I know it's natural, but come on. When the plane shakes, I'm reminded that I'm on a plane... and I also notice I just lost my night's sleep.
Now, some airplane flights offer meals, right? I'm not a big fan of these, so I just skip them. Besides, I'm probably trying to forget the fact that I'm on an airplane by playing Monster Hunter or listening to music or something. Whatever it may be that I'm doing, I'm just running from the fact that I'm on an airplane. It doesn't help to have some flight attendant wearing an apron approach me and put her face in front of mine and ask if I'd like chicken or fish. Just give me a Sprite; I'll manage somehow.
Jet lag. God, I hate jet lag, especially for prolonged periods of time. It takes me usually a week to get used to one time zone. Now just last weekend, I went back to Japan for two days and I was getting the hang of Japan time. Not really though. I was tired as all get out, having slept four or five hours over the course of this entire trip (besides the hours I slept on the plane). I try to avoid sleeping on planes.
I know it's unhealthy, but try to understand me here. If I sleep on planes, I will NOT be able to sit down and not feel like I'm still on an airplane. It's horrifying. At the same time the sleep was overpowering during my stay in Japan, I had to take lots of public transportation. And that made it only worse because I could not sit AND stand without feeling like I'm on a plane, a taxi or an elevator. So for much of my stay at Japan, I was crouching. Because no one crouches in a plane, taxi or elevator. That's just absurd. You could say I adapt too well to my surroundings. I just say it's some deity's way of trolling me in real life.
So all in all, I guess you could say that my most recent trip to Japan was a pain to me internally. Also, I wrote this at 12:30 AM in my wooden chair. You can guess how I felt. Tired. And sitting in a plane. I sniffed myself several times to make sure I still wasn't in one. And thank God, I'm not in one right now.
Also, it hurts to know that the last thing I viewed before I went on this very recent trip was Nyan Cat.
Jet lag, oh God. This screws me over every time I go on a trip, like when I went to Hawaii this summer.
ReplyDeletePersonally, as far as the trauma of ascending into and descending from the (terrifying) sky, I was deathly scared of it for my first ten years or so of life; I generally take at least two plane trips a year, going and returning, for a vacation to somewhere. It takes a while, but I get to used to it. Or fall asleep before we take off. Usually the latter.
I try to sleep before take off. Never happens. I'm too busy freaking out.
ReplyDeleteAlso, don't you hate it when your feet get all painful while the plane is in flight? Or is that just me?
Oh yeah. MAH-JONG ON THE PLANE. AMAZING OLOL.