Apartment Shopping Blues

I think the title of this blog basically speaks for itself. The only thing harder then looking for an apartment, is looking for an apartment in a foreign country where you barely speak the language.

I've been in China about 6 weeks now and I have a pretty good vocabulary given the fact that I didn't speak any mandarin before I touched down here. I can speak with cab drivers, order in a restaurant, find the nearest bathroom, sing nursery rhymes (from school), and ask people to talk slower. The hardest part is getting the grammar right. I know the words that go into the sentence, but I always put them in the wrong order. For example, if I wanted to say say "Do you know where the restaurant is?" I would actually say in mandarin ... "You, restaurant, where is?"

Anywhoo, my language difficulties aside, as you read I have been apartment hunting. During the holiday, I have been meeting with agents to find a place to live. Agents basically act as an intermediary between landlords with vacant apartments and apartment hunters. And just when I thought I would never find a place to live, an agent that I met two weeks ago called me out of the blue and showed me a really nice apartment. Nice being a relative term.

For 3,000 RMB in Jing'an Temple, I get a bedroom, balcony, large living room, kitchen, and bathroom; a pretty good price given the size and how the Jing'an Temple area is one hopping place. All I need now is my paycheck which I receive on Thursday(finally!) and I'm moving straight in. One of the downsides, there is absolutely nothing in terms of kitchenware, sheets, bathroom essentials, and everything else that makes this place more then just four walls and a roof.

First paycheck = rent for three months;
Second paycheck which I get in three weeks = turning my apartment into a bachelor pad. :-) Just kidding Mom. It's going towards spoons and everything else I need.

I mailed out a bunch of stuff a couple days ago too. So everybody cross you fingers things don't get lost and keep your eyes on the mailboxes.

Love,
Ezra