Three hours instead of weeks "in" Korea

On April 2nd, I left Frankfurt, shedding a few tears at the airport (hello, separation anxiety). After almost 20 hours of traveling and barely any sleep, I landed at Incheon Airport.

But I was denied entry into South Korea.

Wait, what?

I had studied Korea's visa free entry policy for transfer passengers, which stipulates that "nationals of countries that need a visa to enter Korea ... [who] hold a visa (including permanent residency) to enter at least one of the 32 European countries and △ transit through Korea to enter one of the 32 European countries, or, △ departed from one of the 32 European countries and transit through Korea bound for the country of origin or a third country" can qualify for a visa-free entry to Korea and stay for up to 30 days.

Having also read that a visa for any of the 32 European countries is accepted only when the visa sticker is affixed to the passport and its validity can be confirmed, I doubted my temporary German residence permit would meet the requirement since it is a card and not a visa sticker in my passport. But I thought it functioned the same as a visa--it allows me to re-enter Germany before its expiration date in May 2025. Would it still work?

To clarify my uncertainty, I called both the Korean Immigration Contact Center and the Entry/Exit Management Office inquiring about my situation. They verbally confirmed that, as a Chinese passport holder with a German residence permit departing from Germany to transit through Korea en route to Japan, I would be allowed to enter Korea per the policy above.

However, the immigration officer inspecting my documents at the airport told me otherwise. With furrowed brows, she questioned my attempt to enter the country: "Who told you you can come to Korea? Eh?"

Oops, so I can't come after all?

My heart raced, and a mixture of disbelief and frustration washed over me. "I called ahead," I wanted to argue, but instead, I tried to explain my situation and plead my case with the little energy I had left, hoping she would carefully review the documents I provided, including the Watson reference letter at the bottom. I was met with the same questioning and annoyance, though.

I wanted to know who it was on the phone that told me I could come, too.

"What is this?" The officer pointed to my German residence permit, picked it up and dropped it down on the desk. "This doesn't work, you know?" I thought I detected some contempt in her tone. It didn't seem like she would change her mind, as she had reached the decision after consulting with three colleagues who sat in cubicles next to her.

She also told me that because I had a layover in China, they regarded me as a passenger who departed from China instead of Germany (even though I did not even enter China). This would disqualify me to enter Korea even if I had a German visa sticker in my passport, unless my next destination after Korea was Germany.

My goodness gracious.

I felt frustrated. I was caught in a limbo, being so far away from both home and my destination.

What do I do now?

I looked at my watch. 17:20. I should have arrived at my Airbnb and be grocery shopping with my hosts, as we had planned. Instead, I was frantically searching for flights, trying to find the most economical and logistically feasible way out and forward.

With a Chinese passport, my options were pretty limited. I could fly to China and figure out the next steps from there, but that would not be Watsoning anymore.

Luckily, I had been granted a 90-day visa to Japan. I say luckily, because usually, Chinese citizens who apply for a Japanese tourist visa from China are granted only 15- or 30-day visas. Knowing this, I had only applied for a 30-day visa, but I was surprised to be granted a 90-day one, most likely because I applied for it in Munich as a resident of Germany.

The prospect of having more time in Japan was exciting. I had wished for it anyway.

T'way Air. Seoul to Fukuoka. Departure at 18:25. $90. That’s it. 

I booked the ticket and ran upstairs to security check. Thank goodness I didn't have checked luggage to pick up and recheck.

In my mind, the line-up of events I had planned for Korea still flashed: a 10-day Airbnb stay with a cool vegan couple in Mangwon-dong; vegan meetups at various restaurants; attending the Korea Vegan Fair; staying with the creator of Sesame Sprinkles, a blog I've been following for several years; and a Templestay at Baekyangsa to learn about Korean temple food with Venerable Jeong Kwan, whom I've wanted to meet since first watching her feature on Chef's Table S3.E1 in 2018.

None of that would happen now, but I had committed to embracing things as they come along.

Maybe I will come back to Korea with a visa later, during my Watson or beyond. Maybe not.

For now, it's time to focus on what's in front of me. 8 weeks in Japan. Los geht's.