My journey to South Korea

So. It’s been almost 2 months since I arrived at Incheon Airport, South Korea. Life has been interesting, exciting and one hell of an adventure. But today, I reflect back on my journey to get here. In short, I planned to come here to teach English. South Korea’s appeal was largely due to the structured way of life in addition to the financial benefits of getting a teaching position here.

If I knew the complications that a global pandemic would present after graduating from University in 2019, I’m not sure I would have chosen the path I did. A path that involved traveling halfway across the world, that is. I guess in hindsight everything could have been better ‘if I had made this choice’ or ‘if I had chosen to do that rather’. Why we always question ourselves like this, I don’t know. But, in short, I had made the decision and there was nothing I could do about it.

So when the 23rd March, 2020 came around and a national lockdown came into play on the 27th March, I had no idea that this was the start of a one and a half year wait to get to South Korea.

A year and a half that looked pretty much like this:

While I wasn’t sitting in my room contemplating the meaning of life while playing sad songs on my keyboard, I got a few interviews for English teaching jobs in South Korea. Some interviews were from hopeful school owners offering me a job in hopes of the pandemic getting better and some were just reluctant to consider me at all, due to my home being South Africa – a ‘risky’ place to come from with the pandemic still at large. This, in addition to fluctuating travel restrictions and new obstacles around every corner, particularly relating to documentation, seemed to hinder my every move. So, I could not secure a job for the duration of 2020.

Fast forward to mid 2021, with the second wave over, there was a glimmer of hope amidst it all. I got a job offer on the 21st May, 2021 and knew this was the right time for me. The idea that things would start happening quite fast, after getting the job offer, was a thought that got me through my darkest of times. I knew that it could be any day that I would receive the email offering me a contract and in only a matter of weeks I could be on the plane. When the day finally presented itself, I felt a sense of relief pass over me, like everything was finally going to happen and my life was in some way, about to start. It wasn’t long after I got the job offer that I accepted it – and as I predicted, everything happened really fast. I was able to book my flight just a few weeks after getting the job offer. With the uncertainties linked to COVID-19, I knew that getting out as soon as possible would be wise. I tied up a few loose ends with my documentation and booked a flight for the 5th July, 2021.

Probably the most stressful part of travelling during these times, are the COVID-19 tests. Up until a few days before my departure, I had never had a COVID-19 test. The idea of having your fate lie in the hands of the test, is somewhat unsettling. Not that I ever put myself in any situations that made me truly believe I could ever test positive, still, there’s always a part of you that asks: “What if?”

Thank goodness, the test came back negative and I managed to board my flight with no hiccups. If only I knew… there were no hiccups… just yet.

After my, more or less, 28 hours of travelling, I landed at Incheon Airport, South Korea. Now, a little bit more about me, I get flustered very easily. And of course, getting flustered with the addition of a large trench coat, only results in one thing – an increase in body temperature. So, best believe after my recorded temperature of 37.5°C at the airport upon arrival, I got some extra special treatment from the airport officials. I was escorted to my very own, private, quarantine area and given some food.

How luxurious. Here, I had to wait for my temperature to go down. The additional stress of the whole situation only made matters worse as additional stress does not usually assist in the lowering of one’s body temperature. So, I was then taken aside and told I will need to endure another COVID-19 test. Being alone and scared in a foreign country without the ability to communicate (due to the language barrier) is not really what I imagined for myself, but hey, such is life.

After a few tears and a swab up the nose, I was escorted through immigration, collected my luggage, and taken to a facility I was told I would have to stay in, until the COVID-19 results were available. With my flight being at 5pm, and my fun COVID-19 scare taking a few hours, I was told I would have to spend the night. Now. If I can explain this set-up to you simply, you can determine for yourself my feelings at the time. The room’s windows were glued shut, the door was locked from the outside, my bed was a lonesome mattress covered in plastic and the pillow was, well, non-existent.

 My night was unsettling and in the morning when my results came back negative, I was told I could leave – ready to endure the 2 weeks ahead of me in quarantine.

Whoever decided to glamourize travelling, thanks for nothing. My journey was far from perfect but I guess few are. Life works in weird and wonderful ways I guess. “Character building”, I always tell myself. 

For anyone who is about to travel to South Korea (or any place really) or is planning to travel in the near future, know that there will always be hiccups. Things will never go exactly how you planned. My dad always tells me, “the only thing you can know for certain about the future is that things will never go as planned, we only plan for things because that is better than doing nothing”.

Thanks, Dad.