A New Home

For the last month, we have been living in our new 'house'. I use that term loosely because 600 square feet 20 storeys up a concrete tower cannot really be called a house. However many people refer to their apartments as houses and flats. We were going a bit stir-crazy in the hotel room. Two kids in a single room. We were having to put the kids to bed and then retire to the bathroom while they go to sleep. The advantage of the hotel is that you pay just one bill and it includes power, phone has a TV and basic kitchen equipment. We started buying stuff for our future flat so we wouldn't have to buy everything in one go.
We started looking for a flat in the housing estate across the road from the hotel because we quite liked the area--great parks, shops and restaurants. We went to an agent to get it sorted out because they don't have trademe and I can't read the newspapers. The downside of that is that you have to pay half a month's rent in commission. After looking at a few grotty flats--landlords don't clean the flat, new tenants get a week rent free to clean--we found one that was recently decorated with new kitchen and bathroom. It's got a great view of the town and was clean! You can negotiate the price for the rent and we made a lower offer, which was accepted and also negotiated a bit more time before we had to move in because we had already paid for the hotel. This ended up being a good idea because we could move in slowly and not all in one go, especially when you have to carry most of your stuff.

We managed to furnish the whole place (3 beds, a couch, dining table, rug, wardrobe) for about 12,000 HK dollars, just over $2000, thanks to IKEA.

The plan was to stay one weekend and go back to the hotel for the final week of our hotel contract but the bed was so cozy and the kids were off in a separate room (we could close two doors between us and them) we had such a great sleep that we decided to move in permanently. The only way we could move the heavy suitcases and kids' toys was to throw them into a couple of taxis. It was more difficult that i expected to actually get a taxi driver to agree to it. They don't seem to like carrying bags and small bits of furniture for some reason. Luckily a bit of bribery worked.
Our flat is in a private housing estate, one of thirteen towers in landscaped gardens that are kept immaculate by an army of workers. It also has another army of security officers who will even provide an escort service around the estate if requested. I don't know why it's needed as it's all pretty safe. Usually each private estate has a clubhouse that provides recreation facilities. Ours has an indoor and outdoor pool, two restaurants, an indoor air-conditioned playground, squash courts, billiards room, basketball courts, outdoor tennis courts, reading rooms and even a bowling alley. Outside it has a large BBQ area. The best part is that it is opposite our building. There is also a free shuttle bus service to the train station and to one of the markets.

The flat itself is light and airy with 3 bedrooms, two bathrooms and a separate kitchen. I quite like the kitchen, even though it's small, you can stand in one spot and everything--fridge, cooktop and sink--is easily accessible. It might seem big with all these facilities but its only 600 odd square feet. Here in Hong Kong everything is measured on the square foot. Real estate prices are quoted at dollars per square foot. The industry is quite dishonest, though, as they usually include all public areas--lobby, clubhouse, garden etc--in the flat's size. They divide the total area by the number of units and tack it onto the net size of the flat. It's pretty standard practice around here. Ours is supposed to be 820 square feet. You do begin to realise how much space you do have at home and how little you actually need. The kids get to play in the playgrounds that are generously dotted around the estate and everything is kept spotlessly clean.

So far, we're enjoying it and we have made friends with a few other couples in the neighbouring buildings. Jo takes the kids out every day for a good run around and all the kids sleep very soundly.