The Korean government lifted all its requirements to wear masks outdoors in events with 50 or more people starting Sept. 26. 

However, the loosened outdoor mask mandate does not heavily affect the general Korean public, including students and teachers at SIS.

“It will be nice to see what people actually look like without masks,” Matthew Halter, an active tourist, said. “But having been vaccinated, wearing or not wearing masks does not bug me that much. So as far as how the policy will impact me personally, there won’t be many significant changes. At the end of the day, such changes in policy is just another small step in the direction of getting back to normal someday.”

Quarantine authorities continue to recommend wearing masks in high-risk areas, such as outdoor sports events where a densely populated crowd can more quickly spread diseases.  

Following the footsteps of the UK and US, Korea is considering potentially when people can start to take masks off indoors.

Even without mask mandates, however, many still prefer to take proactive measures to protect their safety.