dlombard, what a great story!

For me flying was a lot more unromantic. I started when I was unborn, flew as a baby, flew all my life. My mother always went once a year to a beach for vacation, taking a cheap fly-hotel-food package (Pauschaltouristin). We mostly wore hand-me-down clothes as kids, never ate in restaurants besides when my grandparents paid and learned how to bargain at a fleamarket as kids, but once a year it was a vacation.
For me flying was a bit boring, it took long and you had to sit still, had to wear clean clothes and werent allowed to make them dirty, no yelling and only some toys were ok. I think I started to value travel only after I turned 11 or 12 slowly and it took me until I was 13 and stoped going with my mom and brother (I had my expensive pony that needed my attention) that I started to miss it. Never was fascinated by planes itself, but I love the idea to fly 10 hours and be in Texas or South Africa.