Missing a flight, waiting in an airport, listening to garbled announcements—who doesn’t hate that misery? But Sita Dulip of Cincinnati finds a way to bypass the long lines, the crowded restrooms, the nasty food, the whimpering children and domineering parents, the bookless bookstores, the plastic chairs bolted to the floor... With a kind of twist and a slipping bend, easier to do than to describe, Sita travels not to Denver but to Strupsirts, a picturesque region of waterspouts and volcanoes. Or to Djeyo, where she can stay for two nights with a balcony overlooking the amber Sea of Somue. This new method of “changing planes” enables Sita to visit bizarre societies and cultures that sometimes mirror our own . . . and sometimes open doors into the thrillingly alien.

Sita Dulip's method -- Porridge on Islac -- The silence of the Asonu -- Feeling at home with the Hennebet -- The ire of the Veksi -- Seasons of the Ansarac -- Social dreaming of the Frin -- The royals of Hegn -- Woeful tales from Mahigul -- Great Joy -- Wake Island -- The Nna Mmoy language -- The Building -- The fliers of Gy -- The Island of the Immortals -- Confusions of Uñi.