CHANGES BROUGHT BY “DAILY LIFE DISTANCING”

[Anchor Lead]

Social distancing measures have been replaced with daily life distancing now but many people say little has changed from before. But on the other hand restaurants and conventional markets find it quite difficult to adhere to new government guidelines. We take a look at the first day of daily life distancing in the nation.

[Pkg]

​An art gallery that had been closed for more than 70 days is finally open to the public again. Only those who have made reservations are allowed to enter. All visitors are required to receive temperature checks prior to entering the facility.

[Soundbite] PARK SO-YEON(VISITOR) : "They used to show artworks on the Internet, but I wanted to see them in person. It's good to see them finally."

Some coffee shops continue to adhere to the existing quarantine guidelines. Where five chairs used to be there are still only two. There are also lines on the floor indicating that customers must maintain a distance when standing in line. Conventional markets in downtown areas are full of energy for the first time in a while. Efforts to comply with quarantine requirements continue there, too. Hand sanitizers have been placed at the entrance of the market. But some say the government's guideline saying that customers should avoid touching the merchandise is simply unrealistic.

[Soundbite] JEON YOUNG-CHUL(VENDOR) : "People come to conventional markets because it's fun to be able to touch goods and choose what they like. They don't like it when they are not allowed to touch anything."

Restaurants say serving food in individual dishes is not easy.

[Soundbite] LEE KYUNG-RYUN(RESTAURANT STAFF) : "When we have group visitors, serving side dishes in individual plates is not easy."

Many said things did not change much on the first day of implementing daily life distancing measures.

[Soundbite] PARK BO-HYE(SEOUL RESIDENT) : "I can't tell the difference. People still maintain a distance and wear masks. We keep doing everything as before."

However, taking precautionary measures is critical at this point when a growing number of people opt to forgo face masks because of the hot weather, and adhering to the government guidelines in public transport during rush hours is also difficult.