Day 2: First Full Day in Quarantine
My quarantine experience began yesterday when I first arrived in South Korea on a flight from San Francisco. While waiting to jump through all of the quarantine hoops and actually get to my room and home for the next two weeks, one of the things that I discussed with the small group of other people who would be quarantined along with me was about establishing a routine. In order to make sure that you do not lose track of the days and keep your body on a regular schedule, one of the best things that you can do while in quarantine is have a routine for yourself. Luckily, in the case of the quarantine facility I am staying at, this is not something that I really have to worry about.
The health department workers who are operating my quarantine facility have a reasonable schedule laid out for all of us. Meals are delivered three times per day at 08:00, 12:00, and 18:00. There are speakers in all of the rooms so that the health department workers can play announcements for everyone in their rooms, and one of these announcements is the delivery of food at the three times above. The earliest serves as an effective alarm clock for anyone prone to sleeping late. Of course, some heavy sleepers may completely sleep right through any of these announcements, but most people will awake and have a nice warm meal waiting for them when they open their door. The meals that I received today are the following:
In addition to the announcements about incoming meals, another one of the announcements that is played over the speakers is a reminder to ensure that you record your current health status using an application that everyone was required to install on their phone after exiting the plane at the airport and before going through immigration. The application will also provide notifications if you have not submitted your health status during that day, so you really have no reason or excuse to forget unless you intentionally refuse to do so. Additionally, the health department workers came around to everyone’s room to check their temperature twice today, once in the morning and once this evening.
If the regular food deliveries, temperature checks, and announcements over the speakers in my room are not enough to maintain at least some semblance of a routine during this quarantine period, I am not sure what will. Luckily, I have enough other things with me to keep my mind busy. I have been spending most of the day working on my computer with a little light phone gaming for some breaks. Nothing too serious yet, and of course I did not even have to go without human contact today, as I had my temperature checked personally by a health department worker twice. If this is the standard routine for the next thirteen days, I have no doubt at this point that this quarantine process will be more like a vacation than a quarantine. The only indication of my time being spent in quarantine is the fact that I am met at my door twice a day by a person in a full body pandemic suit complete with gloves, face shield, and face mask.