I never was much of a traveler before this year. I had gone on an airplane a few times for weddings and some vacations, but it was not a frequent event. I don’t usually handle concepts that I don’t understand well; the physics behind flying being high on this list. But when you decide to go to a university that is 1,200 miles away from home, it guarantees at least three round-trip flights a year with almost always a connecting flight in the Charlotte airport each time. By the end of my college tour, orientation, and first weekend trip back home, I had mastered my way around the airport. I knew when to get to the airport (they say to arrive two hours early but for the Tallahassee airport you really only need 45 minutes) and I memorized the terminals I need to go to in Charlotte in order to catch my connecting flight (terminal E is Tallahassee’s and terminal B will get you to Jersey).

No matter how many times I get on an airplane, my heart will always skip a beat when the wheels of the airplane separate from the ground and the plane heads 35,000 feet in the air. And the view out the window almost makes up for the screaming child usually seated directly behind me. I could look down on a city at night for hours. Whether it is a constant stream of headlights slowly flowing down a winding road filled with commuters heading home after a long day at work or a high school football team’s illuminated stadium with players swarming the field, the view from the window is the number one cause of my extreme procrastination on any flight. Ever since I can remember, I had always taken the window seat on an airplane; this quickly became the only request I would make when my father was booking my flights.

The lack of internet connection adds to the quality of my flight. While the secret reason might be because I am on a college student budget and I can’t afford the luxury of in-flight Wi-Fi, it is nice to spend an hour or two disconnected from social media. It allows me to do my work, or fulfill my aesthetic by looking out the window with music blasting through my headphones, with little to no interruptions.

While driving, taking the train, or even walking are all perfect means of transportation, there is nothing that can beat the feeling of an airplane. Whether it is the view or the solidarity that it provides, air travel is at top of my list when I am choosing a way to travel.