House Hunters International - General Discussion

[truther]

Eh, I'm a loving dog owner and I thought it was funny, too, and for some of the same reasons DownTheShore said.  I'm sure the realtor thought this American woman with her 4 animals was ridiculous.  And I'm sure there was a kernel of truth to her comment about putting them down.  But I think she was just displaying that characteristic dry humour those wacky English are known for.  That said the realtor also seemed pretty stiff throughout the whole ep.  Either she didn't like the HH, or she didn't like being on TV, or she's just not a very good "actor" and wasn't up for going around pretending to look at these houses that they weren't actually looking at. 

[AuntiePam]

So I was really rolling my eyes during this episode as the woman was worrying about her pets and the carriage house with gravel in its yard.

And wasn't that the house with the light-colored carpet?  A gravel yard would be better, with dogs -- no muddy paw prints.  Although some dogs eat gravel, so maybe that was the problem.

 

Why were her pets "special needs"?  I must have missed something.  They looked fine to me.

 

I liked the woman -- she had an interesting sense of humor and seemed really smart.  I think she'd be fun as a neighbor -- too bad she didn't want neighbors.

[DownTheShore]

One of the dogs looked like it was blind in one eye. 

 

She didn't need neighbors - she has her pets to keep her company. LOL

[proserpina65]

 

Of course they chose a riverfront apartment; of course he wants a toilet in the bathroom and doesn't understand why a whole country prefers a WC;

I can kind of understand the bathroom thing, in that I always have to pee right after I get out of the shower and running to another room is a bit inconvenient.  But hey, it ain't a dealbreaker.  And since I know that's how a lot of the rest of the first world handles the bathroom/wc arrangement, I wouldn't complain about it on tv and look like an ass.

[TwirlyGirly]

I can kind of understand the bathroom thing, in that I always have to pee right after I get out of the shower and running to another room is a bit inconvenient.  But hey, it ain't a dealbreaker.  And since I know that's how a lot of the rest of the first world handles the bathroom/wc arrangement, I wouldn't complain about it on tv and look like an ass.

 

But they way AMERICANS do things in AMERICA is the "best" way to do them, don'tcha' know? The rest of the world clearly does these things WRONG and needs US to tell THEM how to do them "right."</s>

[Kiss my mutt]

You mean y'all don't pee in the shower?

[Ohwell]

You mean y'all don't pee in the shower?

I do. 

[proserpina65]

You mean y'all don't pee in the shower?

Well, I won't say 'never'.

[KLovestoShop]

Did not like the boyfriend in the Madrid episode.  He was such a control person with regards to their budget that he didn't care what his girlfriend wanted, despite the fact that SHE was the one who was going to pay the bills.  He's a student, with no job, and she's the one who's working and paying for the apartment, but she didn't get much of a say in the apartment HE wanted.  

[DownTheShore]

They kept talking about having only one income, yet were also saying that she wasn't working yet. I was wondering if they were going to live on savings and student loans initially? Then his insistence on the budget made sense. It did seem though, that he did browbeat her a bit over it.

What is it with these people that a 20-30 minute trip in town, on available public transportation is so arduous? If the half of the couple who isn't working has to travel that long to get to the center city, so what? He or she is just killing time anyway with their visits to the shops and cafes.

[Ritalin Smoothie]

If I hear one more person moving overseas who claims that living anywhere but downtown deprives him/her of an authentic cultural experience, I will reach into the screen to slap that person silly.   Traditional old town/downtown is often filled with tourists and, worse, tourist traps. I would actually prefer to live somewhere less hectic and more residential.   The outlying residential areas where most natives live offer even more authentic local experience, I'd argue.

 

I suspect that all they could afford was the one with the awkward layout that they chose, and that the other two apartments were picked for the episode just for show.

Edited September 26, 2015 by Ritalin Smoothie

[truther]

The funny thing is all three of those places were in "central" Madrid, at least by the look of it.  The third place was right near a hotel I stayed in earlier this summer.  Madrid is a fairly large town.

 

I actually came here expecting to see some complaints about her voice.  Was it okay, then?

[Homily]

That really kills me with the ones set in London as I've actually lived in England so I know how expensive living there would be.  I can understand though if you're young and think of yourselves as being "cool" that you don't want to live in a suburb.  The problem though is that even cheap in London is still ridiculously expensive.  If they are living there but not being subsidized by their work or by Bank of Mom and Dad I call shenanigans! 

[DownTheShore]

I think that we're becoming numbed to the vocal fry.

My niece is in fifth grade and I'm beginning to hear overtones of it in her voice. I am trying to crush it ruthlessly by stressing the damage she is doing to her still-developing vocal chords if she continues.

[ChelseaNH]

Lake Atitlan, Guatemala -- ever time I heard about running out of milk, I thought, "Have you ever heard of planning ahead?"  Granted, growing boys make food stores vanish in inexplicable ways, but find another line.

[DownTheShore]

Yes, that whole excuse was very lame. The kids having to take a boat ride to and from school every day and its cost would have been a better argument. Not to mention that the kids were going to be in town every day so give them an after-school shopping list. My mom always sent me to the neighborhood grocery store when I was a kid. And it wasn't as if fhe wife wasn't going to have a lot of free time on her hands now that she gave up her regular job.

[KLovestoShop]

There was something about the Turin wife that I didn't like. I kept talking to the tv, yelling at the wife that you're in freaking Italy and not Batavia, Illinois. It drives me nuts when these Americans move out of the US and expect the houses to be exactly like their former homes

[DownTheShore]

Thank you. She icked me out also, and I was trying to figure out why because she wasn't a bitch and didn't have the vocal fry.

I think it was because she gave ths impression of always being on the verge of bursting into tears. Her face seemed to be constantly crumpling. She also kept speaking with high pitched inflection whenever she was exclaiming over a house feature, which got annoying fast. I just wanted to tell her to put on her big girl panties and enjoy having the chance to live in Italy.

That constant referral back to the yards the kids had in Batavia was annoying too. Kids are adaptable, they can play anywhere. I think that she was simply afraid of living in a large city.

And for someone who was worried about low patio balustrades and doors the kids could open, I didn't get why the decorative gratings over the first floor windows of the second house bothered her.

[truther]

Wait, was she American?  I'll admit to turning it off after the second house and I've already forgotten most of the episode, but I thought she was from somewhere else.  Didn't she have a pretty strong accent?

[proserpina65]

There was something about the Turin wife that I didn't like. I kept talking to the tv, yelling at the wife that you're in freaking Italy and not Batavia, Illinois. It drives me nuts when these Americans move out of the US and expect the houses to be exactly like their former homes

I'm glad I'm not the only one who was yelling at the tv.  All that bit at the end about these relatives visiting and those relatives and hopefully more will be coming soon - yes, god forbid you interact with actual Italians while in Italy.  I really felt sorry for her husband.  Did he get anything he wanted?

Wait, was she American?  I'll admit to turning it off after the second house and I've already forgotten most of the episode, but I thought she was from somewhere else.  Didn't she have a pretty strong accent?

She might've been from somewhere else originally - I also noticed what I thought was an accent - but obviously she'd been in Batavia, Illinois long enough to pick up the American insistence on trying to find houses/yards just like home in every country they move to.

[KLovestoShop]

It always fascinates me when the parents say they want this move for the kids so they can experience the culture. Seriously, unless the kids are older or you plan on staying there for years and years, a two and four year old will not be experiencing a new culture nor will they remember much unless, like I said, they stay there until the kids are teens. Parents of young kids do these moves for themselves, not for the kids. I also got a kick about how the parents seem to think that making pizza is a cultural aspect. Hate to tell them, but pizza is not a cultural phenomenon in Italy.

[proserpina65]

I also got a kick about how the parents seem to think that making pizza is a cultural aspect. Hate to tell them, but pizza is not a cultural phenomenon in Italy.

 

Maybe in Napoli, but not in Torino.

[CherryAmes]

Parents of young kids do these moves for themselves, not for the kids.

 

And there's nothing wrong with that - it's like taking little kids to the zoo or Disneyland, you're building memories for yourself not for them.  It's like, as you say, when parents justify doing something "for the kids" when it's nothing of the kind that it gets irritating.  Upping stakes and moving to another country, especially when you don't speak the language, is hard enough without throwing dealing with kids into the equation.  If you want to make the move for whatever reasons and are prepared to deal with the downsides knock yourself out but please don't try to paint the move as a "we did it for the kids" thing when it's nothing of the kind!

[DownTheShore]

I thought that she was American. The amount of family she left back in Batavia seemed to indicate that - and IIRC, it looked like all her family, not his.

And I'm sorry but the sob story about wanting to adopt a kid from China for 15 years just didn't move me. I realize that was important to them and that adoptions can take a freakishly long time, but if it was that important and such a long-term dream, why wasn't that the first thing they did when they got married?

Also, there are plenty of kids in the US available for adoption that they didn't have to shop overseas for one.

[jcbrown]

 

And I'm sorry but the sob story about wanting to adopt a kid from China for 15 years just didn't move me. I realize that was important to them and that adoptions can take a freakishly long time, but if it was that important and such a long-term dream, why wasn't that the first thing they did when they got married?

Didn't really move me, either, but he did mention that they had to be 30 to be considered for adoption so I assumed maybe they were not old enough until recently.

 

 

I think it was because she gave ths impression of always being on the verge of bursting into tears. Her face seemed to be constantly crumpling. She also kept speaking with high pitched inflection whenever she was exclaiming over a house feature, which got annoying fast.

To me, she sounded like she was whining most of the time and that gets on my last nerve in an instant.

Edited September 29, 2015 by jcbrown

[truther]

So having slept on it, I woke up this morning and realized that last night's Stockholm episode might be one of the greatest HHI's ever made.

 

It was glorious.  The sight gags, the crazy houses, the dry humor -- they did it all.  Plus the HHers themselves seemed like wonderfully down-to-earth people.  She was an "aspiring pop singer" but the shots they used made her look like a street busker.  Their "kitchen" was literally just a shelf in the corner of the bedroom with a microwave on it; I'm pretty sure the only sink in the place they took was in the WC (not even in the regular bathroom).  Is that even legal?  And they'd stand there, smiling, and look at their miniscule, kitchenless studio apartment and say things like "oh this is great" or "what lovely light."  (While taking turns looking out the window because there wasn't enough room to stand there together.)  The way they checked the acoustics of each room and then had their realtor do it -- and he played along but said he didn't know why.  And did you catch how every shot of the three of them emphasized that he seemed literally like a meter taller than these two little Australians?

 

In the end they're happy, they're with each other, and they're doing what they want.  Smiling all the way.  No complaints, no overwrought angst about the size of the fridge (why complain about something you don't even have!), and you even learned a bit about Stockholm.  It was awesome.   

[NYGirl]

I loved the Stockholm couple. 

 

She did have a beautiful voice too.

[Peanutbuttercup]

I liked the couple from last night, in Nancy, France. They didn't do too much whining about wanting an American style home and appliances in France, and had reasonable expectations. And the American wife (sorry, that's rude, I'm just terrible with names) seemed like she was making an effort to learn French and be part of the local community rather than just surround her self with English-speaking ex-pats.

If the prices discussed were real, I need to contemplate moving to Nancy (for retirement or whatever). They seemed incredibly reasonable for what you get in what looked like a charming European city.

[DownTheShore]

That city (Nancy) did look nice and did seem reasonable. I thought that kitchen in the first house would have been adequate for the husband, and it turned out that I was right. You don't always have two people in the kitchen at the same time.

I'll have to be the odd one out regarding the Stockholm couple. She annoyed me with her "look at me" hair color, her exclamations of joy over miniscule living/working spaces, and her mediocre voice. I had a moment of extreme sadness for that guy when I realized that out of love he was hitching his whole career to her, and basically going to have to live in a rat hole because of it.

Edited October 2, 2015 by DownTheShore

[Grneyedldy]

That city (Nancy) did look nice and did seem reasonable. I thought that kitchen in the first house would have been adequate for the husband, and it turned out that I was right. You don't always have two people in the kitchen at the same time.

I'll have to be the odd one out regarding the Stockholm couple. She annoyed me with her "look at me" hair color, her exclamations of joy over miniscule living/working spaces, and her mediocre voice. I had a moment of extreme sadness for that guy when I realized that out of love he was hitching his whole career to her, and basically going to have to live in a rat hole because of it.

I thought she was too old for the "pop" music scene.

[Ritalin Smoothie]

Stockholm couple: I'm very impressed by the miminal complaints from the couple; it seems that they adjusted their expectations based on their modest budget.  The Debbie Downer/worrywart in me admires them for their quixotic quest, but at the same time I keep thinking, "Are they paying into their Social Security?  Will they make enough to retire?"

 

Shallowness alert: I tend to like the modest budget episodes less than the "regular" budget ones mostly because they show an apartment with 1 (at most 2) bedroom and the bare kitchen and the bathroom and that's it.  Basically, there's not much house to see.

 

Nancy episode: Wow, an apartment for under US$200K?  Not bad.  I did think their original budget of $150K was a bit ridiculous.

 

 

[Peanutbuttercup]

That city (Nancy) did look nice and did seem reasonable. I thought that kitchen in the first house would have been adequate for the husband, and it turned out that I was right. You don't always have two people in the kitchen at the same time.

I'll have to be the odd one out regarding the Stockholm couple. She annoyed me with her "look at me" hair color, her exclamations of joy over miniscule living/working spaces, and her mediocre voice. I had a moment of extreme sadness for that guy when I realized that out of love he was hitching his whole career to her, and basically going to have to live in a rat hole because of it.

I actually agree on the Stockholm couple, at least on the female half. I thought she was average at best, basically trying to be a Jessie J (not my favorite) knock-off. But I didn't feel sorry for the man -- I thought the whole relationship gave me a creepy Svengali type vibe. And yes, agree with the other poster who said she is too old to break into the pop scene.

Edited October 2, 2015 by Peanutbuttercup

[Pickles]

The Kansas couple tonight who moved to Australia. She lost her job in KS, so they decided to move to Australia with no jobs? Did I miss something? Why Australia? And did they ever reveal what the husband and wife did for a living, when they did have jobs?

[Pine]

I found the KS to Australia episode off too.  I thought that you had to prove that you had a job before living in Australia.  

I was thinking perhaps she worked for Boeing.

[DownTheShore]

Just a FYI regarding Australian migration rules:

http://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Work/Skil

[Empress1]

They kept talking about entertaining and I kept thinking "How much entertaining are y'all planning on doing? You moved as far away as you can get and you don't know anyone." I guess they'll meet people if they start working and if their (very cute) kids make friends, but it seemed really weird to me to make such a mention of it off the bat. I doubt they'll have many visitors from home.

I'm laid off and every once in a while I think "Fuck it all, maybe I'll just go live on a beach somewhere," but I'm single. I don't know if I'd do that with young children.

[buttersister]

Yeah, something else was going on with the Kansas to Australia couple---like somebody had a very high-paying job at some point with a pretty specific skill set. Hard to believe this wasn't one of those "got a job, been here for awhile" back stories. The entertainment comment also pinged my bsdar, but not if they were already established.

[Empress1]

Yeah, something else was going on with the Kansas to Australia couple---like somebody had a very high-paying job at some point with a pretty specific skill set. Hard to believe this wasn't one of those "got a job, been here for awhile" back stories. The entertainment comment also pinged my bsdar, but not if they were already established.

Oh, they were both mechanical engineers. She got laid off; after that her husband decided to quit his job so they could all move to Australia, claiming they'd always wanted to live abroad. They were planning on finding work in Melbourne as engineers; they said they had six months before they'd have to come back if they didn't find work. I believe either the realtor or narrator said there was a need for engineers there. If all that is true, I guess it would follow that this was a bait and switch ep and one or both of them HAD actually found work there. 

[Peanutbuttercup]

They are both mechanical engineers, and they mentioned that Australia, and specifically the city they moved to, had a need for mechanical engineers. So, not so terribly crazy a move IMO.

[Shermie]

Is there where we discuss the Off the Grid eps? Because they're often international.

Anyway, a couple moving to the Philippines, chosen because the wife spun a globe. Yeah, okay. And they want to be off the grid, but she nattered on about building a a pool and wanting a "native" house, yet was shown one with natural ventilation (space between the top of the walls and the ceiling) and then wanted it closed off and air-conditioned. I don't think she knows what off the grid means. Plus, she had bleach blond ombré hair and botoxed duck lips, so I wondered how she would maintain that stellar look off the grid.

In the end, they bought a vacant lot and spent a year building a really amazing house around existing trees and it had a huge pool. So methinks they were just some richie riches who wanted to be on TV.

[DownTheShore]

She wanted native as in "just like that five-star resort we stayed at in the South Pacific" - lol.

-----

Just saw the repeat of what is possibly the stupidest pet-owning couple episode, the Navy dentist and his new wife from Maryland who had to move to Guam for his job. They brought their dog Mandy with them. Let me just say that they seemed like very nice people but their dog was definitely a combination of faux-child and the wife's security blanket.

Everything was judged according to how the dog would like it. The absolutely dumbest comment was when one of them said that Mandy would like the marble floors.

One of the condos they looked at didn't have a "garden area" for the dog, and the guy said that meant they would have to walk Mandy, and the wife complained that that would be a pain. I'm sitting there thinking to myself, "Woman, you're talking about the dog as if she poops rainbows, you're not working and are going to be home all day, yet taking your beloved pet out for a walk a few times a day is now some sort of arduous task?"

[KLovestoShop]

Don't quite know what to think of the Africa couple last night.  As someone with severe allergies, I totally understood the wife's concerns with living in what's basically a sand pit, but the husband could only think of his freaking garden.  And his comment that the wife could just take some kind of medicine to overcome her allergies, just struck me as cold-hearted.  Yeah, right.  Just force your wife to drug up instead of finding a house that a would be best for her health?  

[Ohwell]

I didn't think the Madagascar husband was a bad guy.  Wifey had a dream of going to Africa and I'm not sure it would have mattered where they lived if she had allergies.  Also, she had some physical problems from an auto accident so she might have been better off staying in the States until he completed his mission.  Or maybe he shouldn't have gone at all.  In any case, she's there now and she's just going to have to deal with it. 

[Ritalin Smoothie]

Are we sure that only the wife in the Antananarivo episode has health issues?  'Cause Mr. Missionary sure looks gaunt and sickly, and that's after the camera has already added 10 lbs. to his frame.  I was expecting him to keel over whenever he spoke.

 

While I completely understand how some people moving abroad really want local charms in their new digs, for Madagascar, I'd say, "Screw it, I'll pay $250 over budget to have new and modern everything.  No mold, no dirt, no chickens."

[Ohwell]

Are we sure that only the wife in the Antananarivo episode has health issues?  'Cause Mr. Missionary sure looks gaunt and sickly, and that's after the camera has already added 10 lbs. to his frame.  I was expecting him to keel over whenever he spoke.

He really did look sickly.  I thought I heard him say that health care was kind of spotty there when he was talking about her allergies but, frankly, I think they both should have stayed home. 

[truther]

Two quick thoughts while watching the new Cardiff episode: 1) If she's just arrived from Texas, then where'd she get her Welsh accent from?  2)  Cardiff Bay looked boring.  In fact the whole episode was boring.  I think they picked some kind of fairly new apartment in a building that was near some bland body of water.  Good for them.  Now they can go back to living whatever life they've clearly been living together in Wales for years already. 

[KLovestoShop]

Truther, I thought the same thing about the wife and her accent. Texans have a very discernable accent, but not a trace on her. Maybe she caught the Madonna Accent Disease and just picked up a Welsh accent via osmosis. Wales is ver pretty in summer, but winters are gloomy

[Ketzel]

The Wales episode was kind of boring all around. Although I did have an eye roll moment when the husband and wife "argued" over whether she would get the second bedroom for her "makeup business" or he would get it for his drum practice. Yeah, great idea to move into an apartment building and plan to practice drumming in the second bedroom. Not like the neighbors or the condo/coop board would have any opinions about that activity. Much better to let the wife use it as a walk-in closet, which was what she was obviously doing at the end of the show.

[Dewey Decimate]

Yeah, Cardiff woman's accent was highly suspicious. The guy didn't win me over either with his "not my favorite story" when saying that they met online. Get over it - it's not uncommon or embarrassing. What IS embarrassing is video recording your Hollywood-choreographed-and-blocked proposal - fucking pretentious.

Edited October 7, 2015 by Dewey Decimate

[DownTheShore]

I came here to comment the same thing about the Cardiff woman's accent. She's obviously been there for a while because her vowel pronunciation has changed from an American one to one more similar to that of her husband.

Ditto the same thought about practicing drums in a condo/apt. The newer buildings probably have cement separating the floors, but that wouldn't help the adjacent neighbors.