Narrative:

This was my first trip into ZZZZ. It was the first trip into ZZZZ for the entire crew. I do not feel like fatigue was a factor in this incident. However; I feel the constant new events from the covid procedures and foreign country operations had me guessing what would happen next and certainly lowered my situational awareness. As a crew we were well aware of all the taxiway issues with ZZZZ and briefed thoroughly on this threat and how to avoid it. I did not want to be writing this report. From the start there was a lot of confusion understanding the controller in ZZZZ from our ATC clearance to our taxi clearance there where multiple back and forth radio calls and discussion among the crew on what was said and to where we were cleared. We pushed back out of spot xyz; cleared to taxi to runway xx via left axx a A1 holding point runway xx hold short of B on axx. This clearance alone took 3 or 4 radio calls and a discussion amongst us. While holding short of B on axx I had the 10-9 ZZZZ taxi page called up. When I referenced this I noticed it was a hotspot and that it appeared to me that taxiway a was the first available right turn from my current position. This was a mistake and I created a mental image that was not correct. Tower; which was controlling taxi ops cleared us onto taxiway a taxi to runway xx. I called out turning right on taxiway a. This was correct per our clearance and the crew agreed. However; I turned right onto taxiway B instead of the second right turn onto taxiway a. My mental model had me making the first right turn and I was concerned about taxing out to far and getting onto runway yy. The first officer called out my error. I set the parking brake and we as a crew confirmed I had made a error. We notified tower that we were on B not a. We suggested a new clearance route of B L2 a to runway xx. Tower seemed unconcerned and cleared us as requested. So there is my first taxiway incursion. I had developed a certain level of comfort with not knowing what to expect for the last 4 hours of constant new developments. The rest of the crew probably felt the same and relied on me to be correct. Normally I call out the turns and point which way I am turning and did the same this time. The crew agreed because it was the correct thing to say; however; I didn't do the correct thing. The dark and lack of familiarity caught me. I should have stated that I was making the first right turn onto a which would have possibly clued in the crew that I had the wrong mental model. I didn't feel rushed at the time but looking back I was frustrated with the language issue and just wanted it to be over. How will I avoid this in the future? I'll verbalize if I'm making the first of second turn that is available; I'll do my best to keep the crew in the loop; and more currency in foreign country operations will certainly help also.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: Air carrier Captain reported a taxiway incursion in a foreign country citing language barrier and unfamiliarity with the airport as contributing factors.

Narrative: This was my first trip into ZZZZ. It was the first trip into ZZZZ for the entire crew. I do not feel like fatigue was a factor in this incident. However; I feel the constant new events from the COVID procedures and foreign country operations had me guessing what would happen next and certainly lowered my situational awareness. As a crew we were well aware of all the taxiway issues with ZZZZ and briefed thoroughly on this threat and how to avoid it. I did not want to be writing this report. From the start there was a lot of confusion understanding the Controller in ZZZZ from our ATC clearance to our taxi clearance there where multiple back and forth radio calls and discussion among the crew on what was said and to where we were cleared. We pushed back out of spot XYZ; cleared to taxi to Runway XX via L AXX A A1 holding point Runway XX hold short of B on AXX. This clearance alone took 3 or 4 radio calls and a discussion amongst us. While holding short of B on AXX I had the 10-9 ZZZZ taxi page called up. When I referenced this I noticed it was a hotspot and that it appeared to me that Taxiway A was the first available right turn from my current position. This was a mistake and I created a mental image that was not correct. Tower; which was controlling taxi ops cleared us onto Taxiway A taxi to Runway XX. I called out turning right on Taxiway A. This was correct per our clearance and the crew agreed. However; I turned right onto Taxiway B instead of the second right turn onto Taxiway A. My mental model had me making the first right turn and I was concerned about taxing out to far and getting onto Runway YY. The First Officer called out my error. I set the parking brake and we as a crew confirmed I had made a error. We notified Tower that we were on B not A. We suggested a new clearance route of B L2 A to Runway XX. Tower seemed unconcerned and cleared us as requested. So there is my first taxiway incursion. I had developed a certain level of comfort with not knowing what to expect for the last 4 hours of constant new developments. The rest of the crew probably felt the same and relied on me to be correct. Normally I call out the turns and point which way I am turning and did the same this time. The crew agreed because it was the correct thing to say; however; I didn't do the correct thing. The dark and lack of familiarity caught me. I should have stated that I was making the first right turn onto A which would have possibly clued in the crew that I had the wrong mental model. I didn't feel rushed at the time but looking back I was frustrated with the language issue and just wanted it to be over. How will I avoid this in the future? I'll verbalize if I'm making the first of second turn that is available; I'll do my best to keep the crew in the loop; and more currency in foreign country operations will certainly help also.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.