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In a recent article
[仕事で外国に行く前にＰＣＲ検査の予約ができるようにする](http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/k10012535641000/k10012535641000.html)
from NHK Easy Japanese I found this sentence, (which I give here in a bit
abbreviated form):

```

    [...]着いてからしばらくの間、決まった場所にいる代わりに、PCR検査で[...]ウイルスがうつっていないことを証明する必要があります。
    
```

I believe the sentence could be translated roughly as

```

     "It's necessary to verify with a PCR test that the virus didn't hit INSTEAD of testing after arriving at the respective locations." 
    
```

But I have trouble to fully understand this sentence, because I do not know
where the いる from 決まった場所にいる代わりに is connecting to.

Thanks a lot!
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question
grammar verbs parsing attributive
Problem with understanding the action of いる in 決まった場所にいる代わりに
Looking just at the first part:

> 着いてからしばらくの間、決まった場所にいる代わりに、

Let's break it down word by word and then reconstitute it.

## The pieces

> 着【つ】いて

**Verb:** 着【つ】く ( _tsuku_ , "to arrive") in the conjunctive ～て conjugation.

> から

**Particle:** "because; from". Following a verb in the conjunctive ～て
conjugation, this means "after `[VERB]`ing,..."

> しばらく

**Noun:** "a while". Strictly speaking, this word is an adverb, but it appears
to be lexicalizing (becoming a different kind of word) in some contexts as a
noun, perhaps similar to how 近【ちか】く has shifted in some contexts from the
adverbial form 近【ちか】く ( _chikaku_ , "nearly, closely, in a nearby manner") of
adjective 近【ちか】い ( _chikai_ , "near, nearby") to become noun 近【ちか】く (
_chikaku_ , "the nearby area").

> の

**Particle:** possessive, also used to allow one noun to modify a following
noun.

> 間【あいだ】

**Noun:** "space between; time span"

> 決【き】まった

**Verb:** 決【き】まる ( _kimaru_ , "to be decided, to be determined") in the past-
tense or completed-aspect ～た conjugation.

> 場所【ばしょ】

**Noun:** "place"

> に

**Particle:** locative, "in, at"

> いる

**Verb:** plain or dictionary form of the verb 居【い】る ( _iru_ , "to be" for
animate nouns). For grammar geeks, this is technically here the 連体形 (
_rentaikei_ ) or "attributive form" used to modify a following noun, identical
in modern Japanese to the 終止形 ( _shūshikei_ , "terminal or conclusive form"),
a.k.a. "dictionary form".

> 代【か】わり

**Noun:** "stead; replacement". Derived as the 連用形 ( _ren'yōkei_ ,
"continuative form", sometimes also called the "stem form" or "gerundive" in
English materials) of the verb 代【か】わる ( _kawaru_ , "to be a replacement for
something, to take the place of something, to stand in something's stead")

> に

**Particle:** locative, "in, at"

## The pieces put together

> [着いて]{arriving }[から]{after }[しばらく]{while }[の]{'s }[間]{span of time
> }、[決まった]{determined }[場所]{place }[に]{in }[いる]{be }[代わり]{stead }[に]{in}、  
>  ↑  
>  for a while after arriving, instead of being in the determined place,

## The initial question again

As stated in the question header, you were having a

> Problem understanding the action of いる in 決【き】まった場所【ばしょ】にいる代【か】わりに

Simply speaking, the いる is just the verb "to be" for animate subjects.

> いる

  * "to be" (for a person or animal)

> 場所【ばしょ】に **いる**

  * Someone **is** in a place

> 決【き】まった場所【ばしょ】に **いる**

  * Someone **is** in a previously decided place

> 決【き】まった場所【ばしょ】に **いる** 代【か】わりに

  * Instead of someone **being** in a previously decided place

Further down, you also state,

> But I have trouble to fully understand this sentence, because I do not know
> where the いる from 決まった場所にいる代わりに is connecting to.

I'm not sure I know what you mean by "connecting", so I'll try answering both
of the possible interpretations I can think of. :)

  * Looking earlier in the sentence:  
The verb いる here is again just "to be". The subject of the verb is unclear
form your sample, but from what little text we have, I can say that it's most
likely the same subject as the verb 着【つ】く earlier in the sentence. So whoever
it is that's "arriving" is the same one who is "being".

  * Looking later in the sentence:  
This verb is used to modify the noun 代わり. 代わりに is used as a kind of set phrase
meaning "instead of", similar to how the English "instead" derives from the
preposition "in" and the noun "stead" (meaning "place" or "position", as in,
"in someone's or something's place"). When translating into English, the
grammar is different, so rather than the plain form of "to be", we have to use
the gerund form "being". See **The pieces put together** above for one
possible translation.

* * *

Please comment if the above does not address your question.
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answer