I was in a rage. I told her I wouldn’t have show up at her airline counter had I known that a traveler need a visa to enter Singapore. I told her that Nepalese and Indians regularly travel to both Nepal and India without visas.

“You can’t fly to Singapore”, the green-clad female staff of Jet Airways told me at the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai. It felt like cold water was splashed on me.  I hadn’t expected such response from an airline staff. She unceremoniously pointed to a couch and told me to wait. She didn’t say why I couldn’t fly to Singapore.

I panicked. If  I am not allowed to fly, what should  I do? When I completed this part of my trip, I was sure I could fly onward. That was why I didn’t have any Indian rupees (IC) to spend in my transit hours. I had never experienced this kind of situation before. I stood there and stared at the girl. But she was busy with  other  travelers.

I was about to give up when she came back to me. She said in a pleasant voice. ” You can’t fly without a visa.” I was stunned. She did not know that Singapore is the only country in the world which gives visa on one’s arrival at the airport. The girl didn’t believe me. I sensed that she was not in a mood, either, to believe that a Nepalese traveler could get visa on arrival there. Not only I was carrying my valid passport, but a Training Employment Pass (TEP) as well, issued by Ministry of Manpower of the Singapore government. My Singaporean hosts had informed me that the TEP would serve as my visa.

But the girl wasn’t inconsiderate, I must admit. She told me she would have to consult her superiors. Then she left me.  I was scared to face her again. She might again raise the issue of my Singaporean visa. True enough! When she came back, she said, “No visa, no travel,”

I was in a rage. I told her I wouldn’t have show up at her airline counter had I known that a traveler need a visa to enter Singapore. I told her that Nepalese and Indians regularly travel to both Nepal and India without visas. A citizenship certificate is sufficient to enter each other’s country. This special kind of relation always encourages Nepalese to take Indian route to visit third country. That not only minimize our travel costs, it also helps to get tickets in our emergency trips.

The girl remained adamant and the situation aggravated into a nasty one. Three hours had already passed and I still hadn’t got my passage to Singapore. Yet I am glad that she handled my problem. A male staffer would’ve been different. Males aren’t exactly good in handling this kind of situation. Men and their egos tend to be bossy.

I’m thankful for her.

Then luck smiled at me. The girl came back . “You can travel. We called to Singapore immigration authority.” She said, adding that the authority informed her that visa would be issued to me on arrival. It was exactly what I had told her.

So, after hours of  explaining that I was a journalist traveling to Singapore on a study fellowship, the problem was solved. I was flying to Singapore.

I felt relieved when the Jet Airways Airbus A332 aircraft left Mubai airport. I hadn’t eaten for eight hours but I slept all the way. I woke up as the plane approached Singapore’s Changi Airport. The sky was red when I disembarked from the plane.  I would be seeing this kind of sun every morning for the next 90 days.

I passed through Singaporean immigration without a hitch. Outside the airport, I saw somebody holding up a small paper with my name written on it. It turned out to be Kevin Tan, one of the students of  Wee Kim Wee School of Communication and Information, Nanyang Technological University .

“Welcome to the Singapore!” Kevin  said. I had finally arrived.

Originally published here.

The Week, Republica