The grand plan was this: to go on vacation.
A bit presumptuous in these tumultuous times, perhaps, but my girlfriend and I were both vaccinated, our passports were in order, and we hadn’t packed more than 3.4 ounces of any liquids. We’d fly from Newark to Rhodes, catching a connecting flight at Heathrow. We steeled ourselves for the British airplane food, but as it turned out that wasn’t even the worst of it. Here’s how I ended up on the C.D.C.’s Do Not Board list.
