<p>Flying or jetting around was easy before the pandemic. No traffic snarls, no stops en route, no dust or smoke and above all food delivered at your seat and that too by a sweet looking smiling lady. What more do you want? But the problem is reaching the airport. </p>.<p>In my own case, I was all set to fly to Malaysia. I had booked a cab and the booking was confirmed. The driver too confirmed that he was on the way and I bought the luggage out, locked the door and waited at the gate. Soon the cab drove in and I gave my OTP and started to load the suitcase. Then disaster struck. The driver said the ‘trip cancelled’ and even before I could recover from the shock he drove off. And I tried another booking but to my discomfiture the reply was: no cabs available! </p>.<p>Of course I was panicking. I recovered in a few minutes and started looking for an auto to reach the nearest bus stop where I could board a reliable <span class="italic">Vayu Vajra, </span>a bus that reaches the airport. Luckily an auto driver obliged and dropped me at the stop. </p>.<p>Within minutes an enterprising chap presented himself before me and offered to drive me to the airport. I haggled with him about the fare and settled the issue. He loaded the luggage and the trip began and I heaved a sigh of relief. I was not missing the flight, after all. </p>.<p>But the relief was short-lived because he would frequently stop look for other passengers. I tried to explain to him the urgency of my situation, he ignored me and drove sluggishly with an eye on the airport-bound passenger. Two kilometres later another disaster struck me. A traffic cop flagged the driver down, argued for a few minutes and asked him to meet the <span class="italic">sahebru </span>who was a little distance away. As he confidently walked away, I began perspiring. I had no time to look for another vehicle. </p>.<p>Luckily he came back having settled the deal by greasing the palm of the inspector. We resumed the journey. At the next stop when he again looked for passengers to fill the vacancy in the car, I emphasised my predicament. “What time you have to reach the airport,” he enquired. “8 pm,” I said. “Don’t worry. You will be there ten minutes earlier,” he said very confidently. He did look for passengers as he drove but luck was not on his side. </p>.<p>Turns out luck was on my side. I reached the airport at 7.50 pm as promised, but he did not find any more passengers. </p>
<p>Flying or jetting around was easy before the pandemic. No traffic snarls, no stops en route, no dust or smoke and above all food delivered at your seat and that too by a sweet looking smiling lady. What more do you want? But the problem is reaching the airport. </p>.<p>In my own case, I was all set to fly to Malaysia. I had booked a cab and the booking was confirmed. The driver too confirmed that he was on the way and I bought the luggage out, locked the door and waited at the gate. Soon the cab drove in and I gave my OTP and started to load the suitcase. Then disaster struck. The driver said the ‘trip cancelled’ and even before I could recover from the shock he drove off. And I tried another booking but to my discomfiture the reply was: no cabs available! </p>.<p>Of course I was panicking. I recovered in a few minutes and started looking for an auto to reach the nearest bus stop where I could board a reliable <span class="italic">Vayu Vajra, </span>a bus that reaches the airport. Luckily an auto driver obliged and dropped me at the stop. </p>.<p>Within minutes an enterprising chap presented himself before me and offered to drive me to the airport. I haggled with him about the fare and settled the issue. He loaded the luggage and the trip began and I heaved a sigh of relief. I was not missing the flight, after all. </p>.<p>But the relief was short-lived because he would frequently stop look for other passengers. I tried to explain to him the urgency of my situation, he ignored me and drove sluggishly with an eye on the airport-bound passenger. Two kilometres later another disaster struck me. A traffic cop flagged the driver down, argued for a few minutes and asked him to meet the <span class="italic">sahebru </span>who was a little distance away. As he confidently walked away, I began perspiring. I had no time to look for another vehicle. </p>.<p>Luckily he came back having settled the deal by greasing the palm of the inspector. We resumed the journey. At the next stop when he again looked for passengers to fill the vacancy in the car, I emphasised my predicament. “What time you have to reach the airport,” he enquired. “8 pm,” I said. “Don’t worry. You will be there ten minutes earlier,” he said very confidently. He did look for passengers as he drove but luck was not on his side. </p>.<p>Turns out luck was on my side. I reached the airport at 7.50 pm as promised, but he did not find any more passengers. </p>