I just realized some people might be curious about what the airports/flying was like during covid 19 so here we go. I went from Tokyo to America, and then to Canada.

At Narita airport, all stores that I could see were closed. At first every international flight except for mine was cancelled, but then two others resumed service. Many of the check-in places were closed. There were maybe 20 people at most. It was very quiet.

The flight from Japan to America, which is usually packed, was almost empty. Everyone had three seats to themselves. I was able to sleep on a plane for the first time because I could put up the armrests and lie down. Still, I noticed many staff lowering their masks to talk to ppl

America was frustrating. Many people would wear a mask for check-in and then take it off as soon as they got to the waiting area for their flight. Then they would put it on again for the plane ride because it was required. Many of the stores inside the airport were still open.

What I found really weird is that many souvenir places and cafes were closed, but makeup counters and clothing stores were still open. Makeup really stood out to me, especially with samples and whatnot. That can't be sanitary, can it?

There were many people walking around without masks. I read an article today about how uncomfortable masks are. I don't get it. In Japan I wore a mask almost every time I went out and I am a big baby when it comes to pain/discomfort. This is a PANDEMIC.

My flight from America → America was the only one where there wasn't much social distancing on the plane itself.

In Canada, again many of the stores in the airport were open. The thing about Canada is that you know 100% that all of the people arriving were Canadian citizens because of the current travel restrictions. After landing, I was alone in the airport looking for a taxi.

One thing I sort of expected was for there to be alcohol supplied and people checking your temperature at the gate, but that didn't happen. It was really bizarre, especially in Japan where they were doing this at some retail stores... but not the airport?

I've also never had to fly via America before. I always fly AirCanada. They were originally going to resume service to Japan mid May, but they changed it again to June. I decided not to wait and went via America instead. I didn't want to wait only to have the dates changed again.

So that's it I guess. I think the most jarring thing was how empty the airports were. I also usually have a lot of anxiety around flying, but this time I had none. Maybe that's because there were fewer people around.