My Son Wants to Live in Asia: Now I Know Why
About three weeks ago, my son, who had been teaching English in South Korea left for Taiwan for his new teaching assignment. Because this was at exactly the time that the COVID-19 virus was exploding in South Korea, he was put in a 14-day quarantine upon arrival in Taiwan. His recruiter met him at the airport and took him to a hotel room where he was told to stay for 14 days under penalty of a $5,000.00 fine. He was told that he would receive a phone call each day on the hotel room phone so they could make sure he was adhering to the quarantine. He was able to order food through Uber Eats. We spoke every few days on Skype. He reported that he had not received a phone call until day five, but I imagine it took them a while to get things set up. He managed to keep his spirits up during the quarantine and was finally released on Thursday. We spoke with him on Friday night, and I was astounded at the hospitality that the Taiwanese offered him.
His recruiter picked him up from the hotel and took him immediately for a health check. There they took blood, updated his MMR vaccine, and gave him a physical. All for free, I’ll note. Then the recruiter took him around to apartments that he had identified interest in renting. They found one that suited his needs, and he signed the lease. The building is owned by an elderly couple who didn’t speak much English, but they insisted…
