I was travelling back from Brasilia to India. It was the first flight from Brasilia to Rio De Janeiro. I have been travelling in the aeroplanes since last many years. I hardly have the travel sickness while flying. However, aeroplanes are not meant for travelling in known zones. Instead, they connect otherwise extremely faraway countries. From India, Brazil is on the other end of the world. Located in the Southern American continent, we know Brazil because of its football team only. I was quite fascinated that I was travelling to this beautiful country on earth. But, it was a long flight journey of almost 24 hours and more. While going to Brazil it was 26 hours but while returning it was almost 36 hours journey. One has to cross entire Asian continent, reach Europe (Rome in my case), cross Europe and fly to Africa (the Sahara Desert including), travel through the Atlantic Ocean and then comes the great Brazilian shores.

I had never travelled such a long journey by air before. I was a bit nervous while going to Brazil. What added more to this was when I lost my baggage in Sau Paulo. It took the airline two days to trace where it was lost and finally I got it back two days before my return journey. Meanwhile, I managed in the same clothes in which I had left Delhi.

I will write about my stay in Brasilia separately. But I started my return journey with same nervousness with all beautiful experiences. I boarded the flight of Avianca airline from Brasilia. Quite like India one witnesses beautiful diversity of people in Brazil as well. Sometimes its difficult to imagine that you are not in India. Many faces look so similar in terms of complexion, hair colour and height that one tends to think that most of the people travelling are Indians. This sense is less when one travels to Brasilia or Sau Paulo. On this route, a majority of populations is white skinned and Portuguese speaking. This generates a feeling of unbelonging to any person who is not from that part of the land that he or she is travelling in an alien territory.

However, flight to Rio was an entirely different experience. As I boarded the plane I found that my seat was in the middle of a family (a man, women and three young school or college going boys). They were looking almost like Indians. This could probably be my biased lens as well of judging people by their skin colour but in an alien land one tries to find similarities with people around and also feels nervous looking at people with entirely different features. This I assume is a human tendency. So when I saw that I was sitting amongst people who were quite like me I felt a bit relaxed. The piolet announced that we were going to take off. Everyone got busy with putting the seat belts on. I was sitting and thinking what should I do next- read a book, try to write something or maybe just sit back and think since it was only an hour long flight. The white-skinned air hostess ( I have never seen an exception so far) also started ensuring that everything and everyone is in order. I was feeling relaxed sitting in the middle of the man and a boy of the family. Two boys and the woman were sitting in the next row.

Suddenly, the man sitting next to me patted on my shoulder and offered his hand for a handshake. He said something in Portuguese which I didn’t understand. But I could guess that he was just trying to communicate his best wishes for the travel. After speaking a sentence he got settled and didn’t speak anything during the entire journey. I also got busy reading a novel. The boy sitting next to me started listening to some music.

The journey continued smoothly for an hour. Suddenly the plane started shaking heavily. Usually, it happens due to bad weather. I didn’t pay attention and continued reading. In the middle of this, the aeroplane bumped and everyone was shaken. Some people sitting at the back screamed. For a moment I felt that the plane was suddenly going down. Much before I could have made sense of this, the plane got settled in a few seconds. But I started feeling shaken from within. I was trying to settle down meanwhile I saw beautiful Brazilian hills which cover the city of Rio De Janeiro.

Passing through so many parts of the world was a beautiful experience, I had tried to capture some of these on my mobile camera. The hills near the city of Rio were of a different nature. Not very high but with sharp peaks and full of green cover was giving a beautiful feeling that the earth is green. I thought of capturing it on my phone. With shaking hands, I took out my phone unlocked it and started clicking pictures. Since mine was not a window seat I requested the boy who was sitting in the window seat to allow me to capture the beautiful view of the hills. He gave a smile and moved back. Before the view has been gone I clicked few pictures quickly. It was difficult for me to click with trembling hands. The boy looked outside first, looked at me and said softly- “help”.

By then I had clicked the pictures. So I thanked him but told him that I just needed some quick pictures for a memory. He smiled in return. He was a thin boy with curly hair wearing two chains made with some small Brazilian stones. Suddenly I saw a few more beautiful hills and also a view of the city. The aeroplane has already started descending. I thought of capturing a view of the city of Rio. I again unlocked my phone and tried to click. However, my hands started trembling terribly. Though I could capture the pictures, the boy could see that I was having trouble with clicking pictures. Meanwhile, the piolet made an announcement about landing in a few minutes. I sat back as I thought I had enough for the purpose of memory.

Suddenly the boy took his phone out and started typing quickly. After a minute he gave me his phone. With some reluctance, I looked at the phone screen. He had typed in google translation in Portuguese showing its English translation “Are you all right.”

I was speechless for a moment. I didn’t know how to react. He looked at his face and then looked back at the phone screen. Realizing that I need to answer this, I recovered from my state of astonishment. I replied: “Oh, Yes, but why did you ask this.” He spoke something again in Portuguese again. Realizing that he may not understand it I typed my reply, or maybe a counter question, in English.

He retyped: “I don’t like flying because I feel nervous. But because you were trembling I thought of asking you.” This took him a few more seconds to type it.

He again gave me his phone with his reply. I typed: “Oh. Yes. I also became nervous when the plane was shaking.” He read it and smiled.

“But still you were clicking pictures.” He again typed.

“Because Brazil is a beautiful country. I wanted to click the beauty.” I typed back.

“My English bad, only Portuguese” He spoke slowly. I looked at him for a second. I was really amazed the kind of concern he had shown. He took so much of pain to ask me about my wellbeing. I didn’t exactly know how to respond. The earlier feeling of ‘alien country, unbelonging, skin types, language differences’ all of these became meaningless. It was the sense of human concern which was ultimately prevailing in the air. I somehow came back from my thoughts and thanked him for his concerns. He smiled and offered his hand for a handshake.

The aeroplane has landed meanwhile and now was moving slowly on the runway. He again typed on the phone screen: “Are you an America.”

“No. I am an Indian. ” I replied. He gave a wide smile and retyped in google assistant: “Is India a good country to live.”

I laughed and replied: “Oh yes. Crowded but very beautiful.”

He again started typing on his phone screen with his thin fingers. “I wish people here would have felt so about this country as well.” he typed.

I had no response this time. I asked him his name. His name was Peter. I thanked him again and picked up my bag. I started walking towards the exist. The plane was on the ground now and the door had been opened for the exit. I came out and started walking in the corridors of Rio airport.

Suddenly Peter came in front of me and said: “Your name. Sorry. Forgot.”

I smiled and told him my name. I took out a visiting card and gave it to him. He smiled and replied: “Thanks for liking my country.” We hugged each other and both of us left in different directions.

I was thinking “How true. Love is in the air.”