Preliminary Planning#
For me, 2023 is destined to be a memorable year, especially in the autumn months of September and October.
This trip was meticulously planned for about a month - starting at the end of August and undergoing multiple destination changes. Initially, I planned to go to Shaanxi for research with a friend in Beijing, but due to time constraints, I had to abandon this plan and instead opted for a short trip together. The original destination was Wuhan and Changsha, but in the end, only the trip to Changsha with this friend from September 28th to October 2nd was retained. On October 2nd, my friend returned to his own home early in the morning, and I flew alone to Chengdu to attend a two-day music festival. On October 4th, I returned to Chongqing to pick up my girlfriend from the airport and spent four days together before sending her back to school.
Departure#
On September 28th, with the end of my TOEFL speaking class, I hurriedly left with my luggage - a perfectly sized 13-inch suitcase filled with lightweight summer clothes and a few essentials. I left the training center in a hurry. It was a weekend, and because the classes started early, I missed lunch and could only buy coffee and a sandwich to quickly satisfy my hunger on the way to the airport. So, after quickly picking up my order at Starbucks, I met the driver on the side of the road and got into the car with my fast food. Unfortunately, in the chaos, the coffee spilled, not only dirtying the back seat but also leaving marks on my carefully ironed white shirt. I quickly apologized and cleaned the seat. At that moment, my forehead was already covered in tiny beads of sweat. Because I had caused trouble for the driver, I dared not make the request for a fast food dinner in the car again - the deformed sandwich box and the spilled coffee.
Originally, in my plan to go from the University City to Jiangbei International Airport, I had reserved enough buffer time - considering that I had already checked in on my phone, only carried a small suitcase, and could go through the VIP channel for security checks, there should be no need to worry about time. Unfortunately, what I didn't expect was that the usually smooth road was unexpectedly congested that day. As I watched the seconds tick away, my anxiety grew, worrying that missing the flight would disrupt all subsequent arrangements. Fortunately, time was still on my side, and I finally arrived at the airport at 19:45, completed the security check at 19:55, and took an airport electric car to the boarding gate, just in time for the original boarding time of 20:10. However, when I marveled at how precise my timing calculations were at 20:06, I received a delay notification, and the boarding time was changed to 21:45.
During the security check, both aisles were filled with middle-aged men wearing black pants and white shirts - unfortunately, I was also dressed in this way, and there were coffee stains on my shirt. The dried coffee stains looked somewhat like bloodstains, so I received the "attention" of both the security passengers and the security personnel while queuing for the security check. After learning about the flight delay, I immediately picked up my luggage and went to the airport's changing room to change into a clean set of clothes. Then, I sat quietly in the lounge for a while, complaining to my friend about my unfortunate experience.
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Finally, I boarded the plane and sat in my preferred window seat, 1K. This position is slightly more spacious compared to other rows in business class, and I can also enjoy the scenery outside. Compared to other airlines, Hainan Airlines provides coconut water in their beverage menu, which I happen to love for its refreshing taste.
The plane slowly taxied from the parking position to the runway and finally took off after a burst of acceleration, flying into the sky, symbolizing the official start of my National Day holiday in the year of Gui Mao.
This article is also synchronized and updated on Mix Space and xLog. The original link is https://ursprung.io/notes/19