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It is 2:56 am. As I am writing this, I am sat next to the immigration counter in an empty waiting area. China’s Pudong Airport is empty. To my right, my luggage. Four seats to the left, the immigration officer. His eyes about to fall, assigned to keep an eye on me. One and a half hours ago I got rejected entry to China. After my flight had landed, I approached immigration to enter China on a 144-Hour-Free-Transit Visa with plans to explore the real Shanghai. I have been to Shanghai twice and I remember being gobsmacked by the number of electric vehicles. The language barrier was no problem, I managed to get around easily. The food, man. My first steamed jelly fish was just outside Shanghai. The swag. Shanghai people ARE urban fashion! So where are we again? I tried entering on a transit visa. It didn’t work because the flights I booked didn’t match visa requirements. The 144-Hour-Free-Transit-Visa allows passengers to transit in Shanghai for up to 144 hours without holding a visa. The eligible transit routes are flying in from country A into country B (China) and fly out to a country C. I struggled with country A and C. “Surely, they mean last country visted. A stop over won’t count, right?” Well, a stop over counts. Question. Have you ever asked an immigration officer whether you could quickly enter the country to grab a bite because all transit area restaurants are closed? The people here are great, I have to say. Thanks to Air Asia I’ll be able to book a flight back to Jakarta in a just couple of hours. Flight counters open at 4 am and there are special rates for people with visa issues. 200 meters from here, the body-scan-machine is echoing “Please take off your cap, please take off your mask”. I am being watched. I have never been rejected entering a country before. Neither do I know anybody personally who has. But that makes a great story. First-hand experience with the Transit Visa in China. Did I book a hotel with a gym for nothing? This is the first and last time booking a hotel prepaid. I was looking forward to it! Fun fact, I did enter China today for a total of six minutes. The officials accompanied me to the luggage belt, and I had a four-minute chat with the immigration staff on the other side of the fence. OK! Fast forward. It’s 5 am. I'm at the gate. I'm still hungry. Restaurants are closed. I am in the company of another immigration officer. We have just had a fascinating conversation about Chinas safety, European cars, smart phones and girlfriends. He became my best friend when I told him I was driving a "Wuling" back in Jakarta. A German driving a Chinese car in Indonesia. Oh, and his last years Bali trip was marvellous! I am tired as fuck. Can’t wait to be back in the airplane. It’s now 2 pm. I am sat in a Blue Bird taxi, back in Jakarta. I feel irritated after all. What the fuck was that. Back in Pudong Airport the officer gave my passport to the flight staff. At the end of the flight, before landing in Kuala Lumpur for a stopover, she announced my name through the speakers to come see her in the front of the airplane. 100 people staring at me walking by in slow motion. I felt like a criminal. When I landed in Kuala Lumpur the ground staff escorted me to the Transit Counter where they handed my passport over. The security staff would not let me enter the transit area, because I wasn't holding a passport. After 1.5 hours of waiting I was granted entrance to the magical transit area. I was being escorted to my gate, obviously without any detours, to board my next flight to Jakarta. Oh, did I order a big meal on that second flight. Back on Indonesian ground I still wasn’t allowed to get hold of my passport. A stressed immigration official squeezed me in and stamped my passport. I was back! Sometimes you just get rejected. Why not today? Danny