‘I’d Rather Be Here’: An Expat Perspective From South Korea

An appreciation for robust coronavirus testing, drive-thru clinics, and a strong national response

Published in

Elemental

5 min readMar 16, 2020

A photo of two Korean women wearing face masks at Jogyesa Temple in South Korea. — People wearing face masks walk under rows of lotus lanterns at Jogyesa Temple in Seoul on March 23, 2020. Photo: Jung Yeon-je/AFP/Getty Images

It wasn’t long after the coronavirus outbreak started that expats in South Korea, like me, started fielding misinformed panic from friends and family back in the United States. This isn’t new for us…

‘I’d Rather Be Here’: An Expat Perspective From South Korea

An appreciation for robust coronavirus testing, drive-thru clinics, and a strong national response

Written by Benjamin Davis