I had never seen the airport this empty. Taoyuan International Airport is Taiwan's main gateway to international travel, with more than 48 million travellers passing through its doors last year.
But over the Mid-Autumn Festival long weekend - usually prime time for people to head to countries in the region - the airport was eerily quiet.
It was also the first time I was taking a flight with just a small bag that contained my passport, notebook and pen.
I had booked a three-hour flight around Taiwan on Thursday night, taking off and landing at the same airport. Such flights-to-nowhere are the newest fad that Taiwan's air carriers are promoting.
The flight I was taking was the first of four "moon-gazing" services from Thursday to yesterday that EVA Air designed for the Mid-Autumn Festival when the moon is full and bright.
An economy-class ticket cost NT$5,888 (S$278), with a window seat going for NT$1,000 more, and business-class tickets were NT$7,888 each.
Passengers had to show their passports and go through Customs before they got to enjoy duty-free shopping.
The aircraft used by EVA Air was not a small 78-seater turboprop that Taiwan's airlines usually deploy for domestic flights, but a Boeing 787 Dreamliner built for ultra-long-haul journeys.
"It's a full flight tonight. Actually, all three nights," said Mr Larry Lai, EVA Air's public relations assistant manager.
More than 300 people snapped up the tickets once the airline announced the programme late last month.
After getting my boarding pass, I walked through the security check and cleared Customs within a minute.
There was excitement at the boarding gate where people were tripping over one another while trying to take photos with the plane in the background.
There were families of three generations, couples young and old, and groups of friends who were armed with fancy photography gear.
Ms Chen Shu-chuan, 51, told The Sunday Times: "I immediately got tickets after seeing this promotion.
"We've been dying to travel abroad. The last time we went anywhere was when I took my family to Hokkaido last October."
We had our temperatures taken before boarding. After boarding, we were each given a gift bag that had a toiletry kit, hand sanitiser, a deck of playing cards and a certificate holder that we could stick our boarding pass to, which a middle-aged couple next to me enthusiastically did.
Their daughter works as a ground crew member at EVA Air. Though Taiwan's airlines have not laid off anyone so far this year because of the coronavirus pandemic, Ms Cheng Yun-ru, 55, thought the trip would be a good way to support her daughter's company.
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EVA Air's 'pretend trips abroad' sparked similar flights by other airlines
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TAIPEI • EVA Air, famous for its Hello Kitty-themed flights, is the first Taiwan-based airline to offer flights to nowhere, paving the way for other airlines to follow suit.
The idea for such flights came from Deputy Interior Minister Chen Tsung-yen, who is part of the Central Epidemic Command Centre. "For plane maintenance, aircraft have to be flown once every three days," said Mr Chen.
EVA Air tested the waters in July by working with Songshan International Airport in Taipei to launch "pretend trips abroad" where people could check in at the airport, enjoy duty-free shopping and board a plane that remained stationary.
When it was clear that even a firmly grounded plane was enough to keep customers coming, EVA Air began designing flights that would actually take off and fly around the island in time for Father's Day on Aug 8. The tickets were all snapped up.
China Airlines has launched an identical programme with its budget carrier Tigerair Taiwan. And newcomer Starlux Airlines, which markets itself as a high-end carrier, also joined the scene.
China Airlines targeted families with young children, providing pilot and cabin crew uniforms for the children. Tigerair collaborated with a popular yakiniku restaurant for its Father's Day flight over Japan's Kyushu, a destination frequented by Taiwanese travellers.
After the Father's Day celebration flights, EVA Air was the only airline that announced a number of flights to nowhere.
Tickets are on sale for flights to celebrate Taiwan's National Day on Oct 10, Halloween and Christmas, and also to ring in 2021 on New Year's Eve.
Katherine Wei
"Planes are like cars, they need to be maintained even if they're not being flown. Why not get a fun trip out of it," she pointed out.
Although mask-wearing was mandatory except during meal time, no social distancing was required on the plane. The vague sense of normalcy was comforting, and perhaps much needed for those on board.
The plane took off at 6.30pm, and for a minute, it did feel like I was actually going somewhere.
The pilot and co-pilot took turns announcing over the intercom the places that the plane would be flying over, including Lanyang Plains on Taiwan's north-eastern coast, Penghu islands off the west coast and Taiwan's southern-most point.
The moon was not always visible, but each time the plane adjusted course that made the moon visible, the pilot would announce it. The passengers would rush to the windows, with little regard for those in the window seats, including me.
Ms Cheng's husband, who sat in an aisle seat with his wife in between us, stretched out and leaned over me multiple times as he tried to take the best shot of the moon, but without success because of the harsh reflection in the window.
A couple in front of us devised a clever plan: The wife held a blanket over her husband, forming a "tent" that covered him and the window. He snapped away madly.
The pilot took special care to manoeuvre the plane so that everyone got a good view of the moon and the cityscapes.
Dinner was a choice of Japanese or Chinese. The Japanese meal was designed by Michelin-starred restaurant owner Hajime Nakamura, and the Chinese set was from local restaurant chain Din Tai Fung.
By the fifth time Ms Cheng's husband knocked into me with his outstretched arm, the plane was almost ready to land at 9.30pm.
After the plane touched down, Ms Chu Tsai-hong, one of the passengers, said: "We were promised about 1,500km but we got 1,646."
