House Hunters International - General Discussion

[TVForever]

Castle Hunters????  What the hell!!??!!  Not that I minded because I LOVE touring castles.  But still..

 

I watched those eps on New Years Day ( I think). It was fun, but I'm thinking that is probably going to be a limited-run series. There can't be that many people seriously looking for castles to make more than a few episodes.

[sugarbaker design]

I can only imagine:  I'd like a castle with a moat, a drawbridge, SS appliances, granite countertops and hardwood floors (even in the dungeon!).

[cathy7304]

Saw Castle Hunters this afternoon. I had to laugh at the couple looking in Ireland. He discovered that he was Irish and now wants to raise his daughter there. Seems like they didn't' really have enough budget though. What really had me going was the complaints on how "unsafe" the castle would be for their toddler. How in the world would she be able to navigate the stairs etc. They also complained on how dark the castles were. Well hell, did they really think ancient castles had floor to ceiling windows? Did they ever stop think glass wouldn't even been invented?

The couple in France came across a little snooty IMO. How could you walk into a place like that and the first thing you say is "we'll have to replace the carpets and wallpaper". It sounded like they were laying the groundwork for talking the asking price down.

Since both of the couple's are still waiting for an answer to their offer, it reminded me more of a promotional add for the areas than serious house hunting.

[NYGirl]

The female castle hunter in Ireland had one of the most annoying voices ever. Towards the end I ended up muting her. They sounded like idiots anyway.

[laredhead]

Agree about the Ireland castle hunters.  I could barely watch the episode because of her voice.  Some of those places gave me claustrophobia.  Originally castles were dark, cold, drafty and fires in fireplaces in poorly ventilated rooms created lots of soot.  Even with modern modifications, they are not ideal to the living standards of many people today.  One of the episodes mentioned the cost of heating one of those places and the amount was huge.  Owing a castle is not for the average income person.

[Writing Wrongs]

How did I not know about Castle Hunters? I must track that down.

[erikdepressant]

Hanging my head in shame on behalf of Colorado right now...  The Quam couple from Westminster CO is moving to Costa Rica.  They're so vibrant and fun!  They go on Quam-ventures!  And of course she scrapbooks...

[Honey]

Hanging my head in shame on behalf of Colorado right now...  The Quam couple from Westminster CO is moving to Costa Rica.  They're so vibrant and fun!  They go on Quam-ventures!  And of course she scrapbooks...

What the heck is a Quam venture?  Even google has nothing about it.

[erikdepressant]

What the heck is a Quam venture?  Even google has nothing about it.

A regular person goes on adventures, but the Quams are so interesting they go on quamventures.

[abbyzenn]

One of the things that annoys be is when someone talks about how they want to be close to work but they don't have a regular 9-5 job M-F.  For example in the most recent one I watched the guy was a tour operator in Slovenia so he was moving his family there.  He talked and talked about the need to be close to work in the city center. But when he leads his tours he's not even in the city - unless his tours were only of the city?  It wasn't really explained well.  But anyway, of course they take the flat out in the country - a whole 25 minutes away - and he talks about how much time he has with the family since he's not working every day.

Same with a recent one I saw where the guy was an airline pilot In Guam(? not positive but it was an island in the Pacific).  He doesn't have to commute every day to/from the airport.

[biakbiak]

Is this show getting kickbacks from the Caribbean medical school industry?

[Pickles]

Omg the Caribbean medical school episode. Are these people really that desperate to be doctors? Where do they end up practicing? I can't imagine going into $250k in debt for Caribbean med school and then you have a wife and baby too? This guy just looked like a dope to me. Every t-shirt had a deep v-neck. The backwards baseball caps. The super long shorts. Just ugh. It seemed like they thought it was just going to be four years of vacation time. Good luck.

[TVForever]

Omg the Caribbean medical school episode. Are these people really that desperate to be doctors? Where do they end up practicing? I can't imagine going into $250k in debt for Caribbean med school and then you have a wife and baby too? This guy just looked like a dope to me. Every t-shirt had a deep v-neck. The backwards baseball caps. The super long shorts. Just ugh. It seemed like they thought it was just going to be four years of vacation time. Good luck.

 

       That particular medical school is actually supposed to have a good record of internship/residency placement in the US. By the way, I am in no way connected to that school or med schools generally. We went on vacation there last year and were on the plane and in our hotel with a ton of American parents and siblings. At least one was an alum who now had a daughter there. Turns out  it was Family Weekend (White Coat Ceremony? I think). I had never heard of the school, but was curious enough to do some research based on what I saw. It's not Harvard, but their graduates seem to do just fine. Maybe someone in the profession can speak more from experience.

[aguabella]

Omg the Caribbean medical school episode. Are these people really that desperate to be doctors? Where do they end up practicing? I can't imagine going into $250k in debt for Caribbean med school and then you have a wife and baby too? This guy just looked like a dope to me. Every t-shirt had a deep v-neck. The backwards baseball caps. The super long shorts. Just ugh. It seemed like they thought it was just going to be four years of vacation time. Good luck.

 

Yep, they made it sound like party time in the islands!  Never heard the wife say anything about the possibility of finding a job or childcare for the little one to allow her to work.  Plus, it was never mentioned as a possible reason for her to remain in Chicago.  Does that tell us it's vacation largely funded by student loans?

 

For their financial stability and the health of his future patients, I certainly hope he can land at a great teaching hospital in the U.S. when he's applying for both internship and residency.  Wonder if he'll need to be at or near the top of the class in the islands.  Or, with good performance, is there a possibility of transferring to a U.S. med school in a year or two.

Edited February 5, 2015 by aguabella

[aguabella]

Is this show getting kickbacks from the Caribbean medical school industry?

 

In the past, the HHI casting agents have been known to troll certain ex-pat blogs so these themed episodes often arrive in waves.  Feels like they've had an easier time finding participants recently so the waves of missionaries, etc. haven't been as frequent.

[Quof]

I finally saw the "dinner parties in Paris" episode. Actually, I saw the first five minutes and deleted it. Fuck me.

[mojito]

While searching for primary care physicians recently, I was surprised at how many of them had gotten their degrees off-shore (Caribbean and Mexico), and they're practicing in some pretty upscale cities. My hat's off to anyone who couldn't get into medical schools in the US but didn't give up on the dream of being a doctor. Here's an interesting article on the subject.

[Christine]

The Hong Kong couple is getting me one step closer to finally stop watching this show. 

 

They traveled all over the world but were completely dumbfounded by the space they'd get in Hong Kong - huge surprise.  I'd think they'd be a little more educated but obviously I thought wrong.

 

The hair cut and flashing back and forth between the long and short hair - no.

 

No housing allowance to use?  Who negotiated the terms of that job?

 

It was kind of funny - 2 bedrooms, a spacious kitchen, space like they had at home, green space, a terrace - and I was expecting their budget to be around $5 to $7K.

 

It's getting old, the rote routine: the impossible wish list, the showing of a place in the area where they want to live sans items on the wish list, and the house hunter again requesting the same stuff on their wish list, like the agent will finally come up with what they want out of thin air.

 

I'll leave now.

[Bronx Babe]

Couple strolling around Paris, trying to "decide" on apt:  Wife:  "Isn't this a beautiful day?"  Hubby:  "Yes, it reminds me of being back home in Franklin, Tennessee".

 

 

[chessiegal]

 

Couple strolling around Paris, trying to "decide" on apt:  Wife:  "Isn't this a beautiful day?"  Hubby:  "Yes, it reminds me of being back home in Franklin, Tennessee".

 

Bronx Babe, you have just demonstrated why the HH forums are better than the shows. I stopped watching HHI some time ago, and now mostly delete HH without watching because they are all.the.same. Unless it sounds like an interesting house or location, or I read something here that prompts me to watch it, they are deleted. Sad, since I watched from Day 1. Thanks for those who are still watching and posting gems like this.

 

Happy Valentines Day!

[peggy06]

Couple strolling around Paris, trying to "decide" on apt:  Wife:  "Isn't this a beautiful day?"  Hubby:  "Yes, it reminds me of being back home in Franklin, Tennessee".

Ugh, it's a good thing the scenery was great in that episode, and the apartments were interesting, because I could not stand Nicole. Talk about entitled. Her hobby has to take precedence over her husband's work - you know, they guy who is making it possible for her to live at her ease in Paris? On top of which, her attitude toward him was so condescending.

[Tony]

I finally saw the "dinner parties in Paris" episode. Actually, I saw the first five minutes and deleted it. Fuck me.

Is that the ep with the corporate lawyer who plans to earn a living by throwing a dinner party every two weeks? I just couldn't wrap my head around that stupidity. Paris is a food lover's paradise with incredible restaurants literally everywhere, and she thinks people will pay her big bucks to eat her amateur home cooking out of her 500 sq feet apartment?

 

God, that woman was unbearable. Hope she enjoys her separate toilet right beside the kitchen.

Edited February 15, 2015 by Tony

[Bronx Babe]

Thanks, chessiegal, and a Happy Valentine's Day to you too!  I just love Adrian Leeds and the Parisian episodes, raging fakety-fakeness aside, lol.  I don't watch HH anymore, only HHI when they're not in any of those tropical countries with bars on the windows and trees filled with monkeys looking right into the master bedroom. 

 

peggy06, that would-be photographer wife was such a control-freak.  You'd think it would kill her to crack a smile. I think she loved those dogs more than the laid-back husband.  I don't think he, uh, ticked any of her boxes.

Edited February 15, 2015 by Bronx Babe

[NYGirl]

I hated the photographer wife the first time I saw her and even more when I saw her the other night.  I still hated that he gave it to her and had to travel to work when all she wanted to do was take photos.  She could have grabbed a train or a bus to the "city center" for her amateur photography.

 

They were way too much with those dogs, (the boys).

[aguabella]

Finally got around to watching the recent Senegal episode this week.  So glad they selected the apartment where the wife had previously painted the accent wall to exactly match their bedroom sheet set.

 

A clue!  Too funny ...

[NYGirl]

Man that Athens Greece couple last night.  The wife was so bitchy!  She was also asking for the world with their tiny budget.  I don't mind that they don't like certain aspects of houses but don't be bitchy about it.  My goodness...I didn't see one smile throughout the episode.

[laredhead]

Just watched the Athens episode.  That woman has been watching too much of American TV House Hunters.  She was asking for things that just aren't as common in other countries as they are in the United States.  I was intrigued by her comment about the marble sink and saying that the kitchen renovation in the 3rd house retained a marble sink.  Marble stains easily and I wonder what an old one looks like and how you would keep it clean because it is so porous.  She also did not seem to happy with his comments about the shower being large enough for 2 people.

[peggy06]

Just watched the Athens episode.  That woman has been watching too much of American TV House Hunters.  She was asking for things that just aren't as common in other countries as they are in the United States.  I was intrigued by her comment about the marble sink and saying that the kitchen renovation in the 3rd house retained a marble sink.  Marble stains easily and I wonder what an old one looks like and how you would keep it clean because it is so porous.  She also did not seem to happy with his comments about the shower being large enough for 2 people.

I had exactly the same thought. She was as bad as the usual entitled suburban American couples we are used to seeing. Kind of a dead giveaway that there was a piano left in one apartment, eh? 

 

That last apartment was great. I loved the roof garden!

[scrb]

In Buenos Aires now. In Recoleta, the most exclusive area, stores have metal covers over windows and doors at night.

Visited a suburb, where the president lives. But also, a lot of more affluent families have summer homes here. These homes have high walls, barbed wires and even electrified fences.

[TVForever]

I had exactly the same thought. She was as bad as the usual entitled suburban American couples we are used to seeing. Kind of a dead giveaway that there was a piano left in one apartment, eh? 

 

That last apartment was great. I loved the roof garden!

I was thinking the same thing when I saw that piano. An apartment in the middle of renovations, completely empty except for a beautiful piano? Yeah, that wasn't a clue at all, LOL!! I wondered why the crew couldn't just cover it with white duckcloth and put paint cans and tools on it. I swear, it would have blended right in and we would have just thought it was construction stuff. 

[NYGirl]

So much love for the scientist family moving to London last night. They are my primo #1 favorite HHs. I even liked the way she expressed worry over the kids with the steps, pool, etc. that's the way to do it people.

[laredhead]

Tonight's episode about the couple moving from Washington, D.C. to Germany was yet another American woman wanting granite, modern updates, bathtub, etc., yet the charm of what she thought German houses should be like.  A bathtub was a deal breaker for her so that the 3 young children could take baths.  How do people in other countries bathe their children w/o bathtubs?  They must have worked this out a long time ago and their children are clean.  This bathtub issue has been brought up many times by American HH's.  The other deal breaker was the kitchen, and she said they had lived in several rental properties and now she wanted a perfect kitchen.  Well, since they were trying to save money and had moved to an area where rent is expensive, seems to me that she should have demanded that in America and not in Europe where the liklihood of getting all of the things on her wish list wasn't very good.  At the end of the show they listed all the places they had visited since living in Germany, and alluded to the fact that this was their last chance to do this before the children got older and were in school.  I couldn't help but think that my idea of fun would not be trekking around Europe with 2 year old twins and a 4 year old.  Seemed to be a very temporary move on their part and I highly doubt the children will really remember much about the year or two they spent there.       

[TwirlyGirly]

Tonight's episode about the couple moving from Washington, D.C. to Germany was yet another American woman wanting granite, modern updates, bathtub, etc., yet the charm of what she thought German houses should be like.  A bathtub was a deal breaker for her so that the 3 young children could take baths.  <snip>

 

And then they ended up in the house that (IMO) had a tiny kitchen (one in which she couldn't keep an eye on the kids when she was cooking, which is something most HHI'ers with kids have claimed as an issue), and NO bathtub!

 

If the majority of these complaints are producer-driven, they need to find some new producers for this show; i.e., producers that can keep their story-lines consistent from the beginning of each episode (the "wish list") to the end. It just doesn't make any sense most of the time!

 

Whenever the House Hunters complain about kitchens being "dated," or "too small," I want to drag them into my house by the hair to see MY kitchen.and force them to watch me prepare a meal. I suspect most, if not all, would claim they simply could NOT prepare meals in my kitchen and would certainly starve to death. Yet despite the challenges presented by my old, very dated kitchen with appliances I like to call "temperamental," I manage to produce pretty wonderful meals every day. The fact that I have laminate countertops and mis-matched appliances has never affected the quality of my cooking, and neither my daughter nor I aren't even close to starving. Funny, that!

 

OTOH, I've been disabled since birth and use a manual wheelchair for mobility. In order to survive independently, I've had to develop my creative problem solving skills and learn to "make do." I've never had the money to adapt any space to accommodate my disability. If I allowed such silly things as not having granite countertops stop me (especially since I'm also short-statured, and standard counter height is level with my shoulders - which is a much bigger challenge than any aesthetic issues), I'd be dead by now.

[abbyzenn]

I watch a lot of foreign language mystery shows on MHZ's International Mystery.  Most of the ones I watch are German or Swedish although there have been a few French shows that I like.  I watch because I like mysteries and I also enjoy seeing the scenery which also includes the houses.  The other night I watched a Norwegian one - the apartment building was blah, the hallway looked like a dump, but in the apartment itself the kitchen had a huge stainless steel side by side refrigerator.  The room was so messy that I couldn't see what the stove was but I was concentrating on that refrigerator since it stood out like a sore thumb.  I wondered if they'd been watching House Hunters International!!!  Guess we'll start seeing more and more of this in the European houses.

 

One European style that I've never seen in an American house is the colored kitchen cabinets which are usually in a glossy looking material (Not sure what it is).  I've seen painted wood but never the European stuff.

 

To get to the show, I didn't get that American couple moving to Germany.  Why move so much when the kids are so young?  I would think the European experience would be better when they're older and can remember it and could even pick up the language.  Didn't like the wife at all.  That first apartment was odd with all the different colored walls even in the same room.

[cyberfruit]

I watch a lot of foreign language mystery shows on MHZ's International Mystery.  Most of the ones I watch are German or Swedish although there have been a few French shows that I like.  I watch because I like mysteries and I also enjoy seeing the scenery which also includes the houses.  The other night I watched a Norwegian one - the apartment building was blah, the hallway looked like a dump, but in the apartment itself the kitchen had a huge stainless steel side by side refrigerator.  The room was so messy that I couldn't see what the stove was but I was concentrating on that refrigerator since it stood out like a sore thumb.  I wondered if they'd been watching House Hunters International!!!  Guess we'll start seeing more and more of this in the European houses.

 

One European style that I've never seen in an American house is the colored kitchen cabinets which are usually in a glossy looking material (Not sure what it is).  I've seen painted wood but never the European stuff.

 

To get to the show, I didn't get that American couple moving to Germany.  Why move so much when the kids are so young?  I would think the European experience would be better when they're older and can remember it and could even pick up the language.  Didn't like the wife at all.  That first apartment was odd with all the different colored walls even in the same room.

 

Oh, lacquered cabinets? I've seen them in expensive high-rise lofts, but never in bright colors like red or blue. They're almost always white or grey. I don't think Americans are primed to like this kind of cabinet style or bright colors because matter the material, they are almost always ripped out to make way for something more "neutral-toned". It's the same with brightly-colored wood cabinets; they're ripped out as soon as the new owner buys the home. This isn't to say that some Americans don't like either style, it's just that they're usually an extreme minority.

 

I think the lacquered cabinets may have been a trend in the eighties, though? 

[chessiegal]

"Kitchen Cousins" on HGTV, which isn't on any more, a family in NJ that did kitchen renovations, used brightly colored lacquer cabinets often - orange is one color I remember. I think they ordered them from Italy.

[Peanutbuttercup]

I love the brightly colored lacquer cabinets that drive the American househunters nuts. In  my dream kitchen I'd have them in some super-intense color like magenta or peacock blue. Or sherbert orange. I would love something like that. It drives me crazy when the American househunters walk into a European kitchen and make some remark like "omg! It's so blue!' as if blue=ugly, or dangerous, or poisonous. Blue is just a color. It isn't going to make the food you keep in the cabinets rot or explode. I don't get why the fact of a color is soooo shocking.

[aguabella]

I watch a lot of foreign language mystery shows on MHZ's International Mystery.  Most of the ones I watch are German or Swedish although there have been a few French shows that I like.  I watch because I like mysteries and I also enjoy seeing the scenery which also includes the houses.  The other night I watched a Norwegian one - the apartment building was blah, the hallway looked like a dump, but in the apartment itself the kitchen had a huge stainless steel side by side refrigerator.  The room was so messy that I couldn't see what the stove was but I was concentrating on that refrigerator since it stood out like a sore thumb.  I wondered if they'd been watching House Hunters International!!!  Guess we'll start seeing more and more of this in the European houses.

 

One European style that I've never seen in an American house is the colored kitchen cabinets which are usually in a glossy looking material (Not sure what it is).  I've seen painted wood but never the European stuff.

 

To get to the show, I didn't get that American couple moving to Germany.  Why move so much when the kids are so young?  I would think the European experience would be better when they're older and can remember it and could even pick up the language.  Didn't like the wife at all.  That first apartment was odd with all the different colored walls even in the same room.

 

Many HHI participants blog (that's often how they were cast for the show) and have complained that HHI isn't shown in their area.  They either have to wait for the production company's intern to forward a videotape copy of their episode or ask U.S. family members to Skype it to them.  Unless things have drastically changed, recently, I doubt HH/HHI has much influence over European consumers' design choices.

 

WRT the couple moving to Germany, I had the impression they were satisfying their personal desires, using the children as an excuse.  That said, the younger ones will probably pick up the language much faster than older kids.

Edited March 5, 2015 by aguabella

[aguabella]

"Kitchen Cousins" on HGTV, which isn't on any more, a family in NJ that did kitchen renovations, used brightly colored lacquer cabinets often - orange is one color I remember. I think they ordered them from Italy.

 

Yep, I believe the KC's demonstrated that too much of anything is boring!  It was pretty much the same kitchen, rinse, repeat.  IIRC, it came out at some point that they had a financial interest in the Italian company.

 

Different issue but I wasn't a fan of their layouts.  IMHO they weren't optimizing the use of space for the homeowners.

[aguabella]

I love the brightly colored lacquer cabinets that drive the American househunters nuts. In  my dream kitchen I'd have them in some super-intense color like magenta or peacock blue. Or sherbert orange. I would love something like that. It drives me crazy when the American househunters walk into a European kitchen and make some remark like "omg! It's so blue!' as if blue=ugly, or dangerous, or poisonous. Blue is just a color. It isn't going to make the food you keep in the cabinets rot or explode. I don't get why the fact of a color is soooo shocking.

 

Have you seen the Ikea version?  They're extremely popular in my area, including the peacock blue and other color options.

[Peanutbuttercup]

Have you seen the Ikea version?  They're extremely popular in my area, including the peacock blue and other color options.

Ooh, no, I live about 200 miles away from the closest Ikea but that sounds awesome! I will have to look for those. Thanks for the tip @aguabella!

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Just saw a rerun of the episode where the two friends from Sarasota, Florida, moved to Ostuni, Italy. That seemed like a ridiculous idea. Hi, we have known each other for six months, briefly dated, and now we are moving to a foreign country together as just friends! Kristen was really obsessed with having olive trees where they lived. I lost count of the number of times she mentioned olive trees and fig trees. The fact that she wanted to live in the country but couldn't drive a stick shift was embarrassing for me to watch. This is the same thing that makes me cringe on The Amazing Race - learn to drive a stick before you leave the United States!

 

Thanks to the internet, I learned that her "I don't have a job" story was all a lie. From her work bio:

Her experience in new business development, and a self-taught knack for marketing and social media enabled her to seize upon a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to assist an Italian real estate agency in expanding its business into the travel, tourism, and hospitality realm. She traveled to Ostuni, Italy, located in the “heel of the boot,” where she quickly learned Italian and worked with hotels and restaurants to create customized tours of southern Italy. A key component of Green Italy’s marketing strategy involved cross promotions with local chefs, and Kristen had the opportunity to travel throughout Italy to interview several of the country’s top Michelin starred chefs including Cristina Bowerman and Sebastiano Lombardi. While in Italy, Kristen was featured in an episode of HGTV’s House Hunters International.

[Sun-Bun]

Saw tonight's episode with the NC couple that moved to India for the native-Indian husband's "job opportunity." I liked the Indian husband and the realtor, but his wife drove me batty with her demanding personality and constantly drawling stupid shit like, "This is too big! This is too modern! I want something warm and colorful like a real Indian home!!!"

I kept thinking, "You dumbass, are you aware that you can add color and warmth to any modern decor using accent colors in various art and accessories?"(which she proudly said she did after they chose the modern joint she seemingly hated the most, like she was soooo smart. Never mind how bland and unimaginative her so-called colorful decorating was in that place with absolutely no art or anything added to the walls)

I wanted to slap her silly after hearing her constant demands for that perfectly "authentic" Indian home---especially when she said very haughtily about her realtor, "I *told* him not to show us any properties above our budget because *I* want to travel!"

Bitch, it's a 3rd World Country. You're lucky to be getting air conditioning and indoor plumbing, and you're sitting there bitching about these gorgeous condos being "too modern"? You don't like the view from a beautiful balcony because the scenery doesn't have enough greenery or you can see the air conditioner?!

I'd love to have seen her reactions had they not been able to afford their monthly rent and been stuck renting the usual dumpy little closets the rest of the poor citizens there can barely afford.

She was the awful definition of spoiled, entitled American, especially when coupled with her dumb Carolinian drawl and talking about the "adventure" of living in India, like she was about to jump into her own stupid version of "The Exotic Marigold Hotel."

[TVForever]

Ditto on that Carolina couple to India episode. I actually laughed when the wife insisted to the realtor about how she must have that authentic Indian charm (or something like that), and her husband said something like, "Look, I grew up here. My wife doesn't realize what she's asking for." He was all about the spiffy modern places. I guess he knew what "authentic", as in "not for the expat market" really meant, and that his Carolina princess, for all her stated desire for that authentic experience, couldn't handle it. The Ugly American thing really is embarrassing when seen on display.

[laredhead]

The North Carolina to India couple were not married, and if she keeps up that attitude they may never be.  The man knew that she would never be able to live the authentic Indiana experience, and he wasn't keen on returning to it obviously.  Sounded to me like he was very happy living in the U.S. and had not really missed his home country very much, although it was nice to see him reconnecting with his childhood friends in the closing scenes.  His explanation of the large foyer in the first apartment was interesting and gave a peek into some of the Indian culture and how their houses are laid out for those who can afford such spacious living conditions.  It was a pretty fabulous apartment for the money and the place they are living, IMHO. 

[Sun-Bun]

Ditto on that Carolina couple to India episode. I actually laughed when the wife insisted to the realtor about how she must have that authentic Indian charm (or something like that), and her husband said something like, "Look, I grew up here. My wife doesn't realize what she's asking for." He was all about the spiffy modern places. I guess he knew what "authentic", as in "not for the expat market" really meant, and that his Carolina princess, for all her stated desire for that authentic experience, couldn't handle it. The Ugly American thing really is embarrassing when seen on display.

Yes, she acted like a total princess diva!!

And she was totally uninformed about the realities of Indian life/culture, especially when she turned her nose up at the foyer area of one place(while her husband had to patiently explain why this space is particularly necessary there), or when her husband had to explain to her that she couldn't wear "too revealing" clothing there.

And she just had to have THE biggest bedroom in every place, no matter what. And colors. If it didn't have colors, wood or arches, it was "too modern."

I've never seen such a demanding, culturally-insensitive idiot on HHI before, so I was both fascinated and repulsed. The stupid accent with its bitchy undertone on her didn't help things.

[Apocalypse Cow]

She was the awful definition of spoiled, entitled American, especially when coupled with her dumb Carolinian drawl and talking about the "adventure" of living in India, like she was about to jump into her own stupid version of "The Exotic Marigold Hotel."

 

Dumb Carolinian drawl? I'm slightly offended by that! Bless your heart! Said in my dumb Carolinian drawl. LOL. Anyway, I agree, she was annoying and ignorant to "real" Indian living quarters.  I imagine she was looking for a Pier One/Pottery Barn/World Market-esque type place dripping with Indian decorations.  I had a slight crush on her hubby.  

[laredhead]

Apocalypse Cow, "I imagine she was looking for a Pier One/Pottery Barn/World Market-esque type place dripping with Indian decorations" - you are so right.  She looked a little taken aback when her fiance was showing her the proper way to eat Indian food with her fingers.  Wonder if she will ever wander off the tourist trails and venture into the real part of the city?  When they showed the cows in the middle of a busy highway I was cringing.  Wonder if any of them ever get hit by cars?  Anthony Bourdain once said that one of the few things he will not eat in his travels is street food in India.  Miss North Carolina will probably be very happy to return to the U.S. when her adventure is finished.  Would be interesting to find out how long they will be there, or if they are still there.

Edited March 7, 2015 by laredhead

[Patti Jean]

Mr Patti jean went on a rotary exchange to Bangalore, India in 1987, so I watched this episode with interest. While he was there, he was pretty much shown the royal treatment, but he'd be the first to say Indian life ain't a picnic. Miss NC has NO idea of what she is in for, and I predict the fiance will soon tire of her. I loved his accent!

[aguabella]

Miss North Carolina will probably be very happy to return to the U.S. when her adventure is finished.  Would be interesting to find out how long they will be there, or if they are still there.

 

The guy accepted a position as GM, Crocs, India, beginning 6/13.  Prior to that he'd held another retail management position for approx. 2 years in NYC.  She'd been in HR for a bank headquartered in NC but then became an HR consultant, working out of India, beginning 6/13. 

 

The episode was probably filmed around early September (guessing), 2014, so they'd lived there awhile.  His position is a regular, full-time, ongoing position, i.e. not an ex-pat, corporate program for a limited period of time.  Retail managers usually move frequently so no telling how long they'll stay.

 

Obviously, they did some acting during the episode.  Thought I heard her call the realtor guy, "Uncle something" under her breath so looked him up before House 1.  Yep, he does consulting, sometimes for developers.  And, they visited new developments!  Must have been a friend or family member so they probably negotiated a fee for his time. 

 

And, the guy'd been away from NC so they accepted the standard HHI trip to visit friends and most likely, her family.  (He'd been located there for years prior to NYC.)

 

I didn't buy the foyer routine.  Interesting to hear and nice to have the separation of a foyer but I'm sure those pristine ex-pat developments had security!

Edited March 7, 2015 by aguabella