YUL-EWR

Left home in the dark of 4am. Didn't sleep at all, only laid down an hour, eyes closed, but my mind and thoughts were wide awake. I ended up talking to a friend, which didn't help induce sleep, but at least helped confront my fears and causes of my agitations. Is a life of travelling and living comfortably from day to day without meaning? Is the pursuit of happiness or making someone happy more important? As with all these kind of deep, existentialist conversations, the only reply was an empty echo at night (and the muffled sound of my neighbour snoring next door).

I rode to the airport, and for the first time, checked in at the priority line reserved for "loyal" frequent fliers. I was feeling the effects of the lack of sleep, and it got worse as I queued the US immigration. A model of the Statue of Liberty stood next to tall flags of the Land of the Free, and she seemed to be mocking the hundreds of travellers wondering whether they would be able to catch their flight. I was taken aside for a moment, though I had no idea why. Was it because I couldn't recall the last time I was in the Minor Nation of the US and A? I really couldn't, perhaps I had gone so many times last year. Only after being taken into an empty hall did I remember that I was actually in the US in October to transit. The wonderful experience must have escaped my mind. Bizarre as it may seem.

But it turned out to be a false alarm, despite the fact the US border guard had miraculously managed to fish out my two suitcases from beneath the ground within minutes.

I went towards the boarding gate directly, as I had only ten minutes left. I skipped the lounge completely, in the hope thatw my "first time" would be a memorable experience. Once on board the plane, I closed my eyes and entered the world of sleep until the roar of the engines woke me as we hurtled down the runway and skyward.

The dawning light tore through the cabin of the little Canadair Regional Jet. Even with my eyes closed, the brightness of a whole new day tempted me to look out of the window. The frozen land below slid by as the plane headed towards Newark.