House Hunters International - General Discussion

[eel2178]

4 minutes ago, Thumper said:

First time I had seen that episode in Spain, and the husband especially drove me crazy.  He was like a child insisting on the dumb castle.  His wife has immense patience.

She wouldn't stop whining about her snakes.

I thought she was just as bad as he was.

[buttersister]

2 hours ago, mojito said:

I think the boy is shiftless.

I’m wondering if his family is funding some of this. So he’d have the kind of place he just had to have. That’s Prince Punk.

[aghst]

14 hours ago, BAForever said:

Bangkok to Hanoi- Billy was a punk, but they were kind of cute together. Assume she never learned to solo on motorbike. Was hoping she would. 

 

4 hours ago, mojito said:

Hanoi Billy was supposedly a wildlife photographer in Thailand, but he'd been working at an elephant sanctuary when they first met. He doesn't want to move out to the "sticks", which I would think would bring him a lot closer to wildlife than the city would. And now he's a "teacher". 

I think the boy is shiftless.

It’s a challenge to walk across the street in Hanoi, never mind driving a moped through the intense traffic there if you’ve never driven one before.

The house they chose was great for the view and all the places seemed to have comparable amenities.

House 1, they said there was nothing but in one of the wide shots, not only were there other high rises but a cluster of smaller buildings which looked like a business district.

Probably tough to make a good income doing wildlife or even street photos.  So they probably work at a school where Western expats send their children or maybe affluent Vietnamese send their kids to get them Westernized education.

Edited October 7, 2023 by aghst

[Mediocre Gatsby]

Newlyweds in Hanoi: boy am I in Opposite World. I thought Morgan was *terrible*. Maybe since she knew they'd already chosen the city apartment, she thought it would be cute to go on and on about wanting a place in the middle of nowhere so she could walk to work. And all the visitors they're expecting: what would *they* do out in the sticks? I found some of Billy's wildlife photos on websites, so I hope he can still do that. I don't think it's odd that he'd accept a job at the U.N. school where Morgan works (I looked her up, too) since he's driving there every day anyway. It didn't sound to me like he thought that automatically made him a fully certified teacher. 

Edited October 7, 2023 by Mediocre Gatsby
Typo

[cinsays]

16 hours ago, mojito said:

Hanoi Billy was supposedly a wildlife photographer in Thailand, but he'd been working at an elephant sanctuary when they first met. He doesn't want to move out to the "sticks", which I would think would bring him a lot closer to wildlife than the city would. And now he's a "teacher". 

I think the boy is shiftless.

how majny times did we have to hear that eh wanted to be where the action is??? yikes

[Jodithgrace]

How does somebody spontaneously become a teacher? I did 4 years of college and a mandatory masters to be able to teach. I didn’t just “decide.”

[cinsays]

1 hour ago, Jodithgrace said:

How does somebody spontaneously become a teacher? I did 4 years of college and a mandatory masters to be able to teach. I didn’t just “decide.”

especially in a foreign country

 

[Mediocre Gatsby]

3 hours ago, Jodithgrace said:

How does somebody spontaneously become a teacher? I did 4 years of college and a mandatory masters to be able to teach. I didn’t just “decide.”

He's not on the school's list of faculty and staff, like Morgan is, so maybe they just hired him to come in and do some kind of demonstration. 

[chessiegal]

6 minutes ago, Mediocre Gatsby said:

He's not on the school's list of faculty and staff, like Morgan is, so maybe they just hired him to come in and do some kind of demonstration. 

Or sweep the floors and empty the wastebaskets. 😄

[BAForever]

3 hours ago, Mediocre Gatsby said:

He's not on the school's list of faculty and staff, like Morgan is, so maybe they just hired him to come in and do some kind of demonstration. 

He mentioned being a substitute teacher. Many elementary teachers are women who may have small children. Little kids get sick a lot and a reliable substitute is often valuable. He may be doing that and could work fairly regularly. 

[aghst]

4 hours ago, BAForever said:

He mentioned being a substitute teacher. Many elementary teachers are women who may have small children. Little kids get sick a lot and a reliable substitute is often valuable. He may be doing that and could work fairly regularly. 

Either that or the school where they work is mainly to teach the students English at a highly proficient level, using native speakers as teachers.

So he could probably do that for substitute stints, speak to the students, give them some exercises or use lesson plans which teach grammar, spelling, etc.

[StatisticalOutlier]

I can't get over Train Street in Hanoi.  Seeing that giant train hurtling through that narrow alley is just the sort of excess I really enjoy.

[Chit Chat]

On 10/7/2023 at 8:07 PM, BAForever said:

He may be doing that and could work fairly regularly. 

I know several people in my area who substitute for teachers and seem to be in demand.  I think they have to take some courses or some kind of seminar before they can substitute.  I know a guy who retired from another job and has found steady work with the same high school by being a substitute teacher.  

I liked the apartment they ended up with.  The view was beautiful!  

The other episode with the guy who owns all of the shoes was a little much.  A closet full of shoes is one thing, but to put them on display "front and center" (I believe that's what he said), was ridiculous. 

[Katie W]

On 10/7/2023 at 12:31 PM, Jodithgrace said:

How does somebody spontaneously become a teacher? I did 4 years of college and a mandatory masters to be able to teach. I didn’t just “decide.”

I took his statement as he really enjoyed being a substitue and was going to work to become a full-time teacher; not that he was automatically going to become one. 

[Grizzly]

Sunshine Coast, Australia. Nice mixture of accents, his Scottish and her Australian. That first place was perfect but sharing it with 3 other people. I understand his reluctance. Thought for sure he was picking the place with the dog. He has a healthy fear of the bush. Could we check back with Andrew again? So rare to have someone who is nice and nice to look at/listen to on these shows.

[twoods]

I just can’t with this couple moving to London. Everyone knows how expensive London is and they were so obnoxious with wanting all the space and modern amenities so close to the city. I’m sure the real estate agent wanted to strangle the wife because I sure wanted to.

[buttersister]

Andrew wiped his feet on the mat before entering #2.  So not raised by wolves. Straightforward selection—the rustic place was made for him. And his new dog! Would very much like to check back with him.

Realtor was a hoot, and right on the money about his parking skillz and craptastic driving.

[Mediocre Gatsby]

1 hour ago, buttersister said:

Realtor was a hoot, and right on the money about his parking skillz and craptastic driving.

She was. He parked and I wanted to yell at him "I'm okay, I can make it to the sidewalk from here" like my friends would if I parked that far away. And when he barreled into that roundabout - yikes! I hadn't even seen a sign saying whether he had the right of way. When my town in Northern California got its first roundabout years ago, I almost got clocked on the first day it was open by a woman in a van who just came in instead of yielding to people already in it. 

I laughed when Mr. $900 a month strolled up to the 4-bedroom beachside home and asked "So I'd be sharing with other people, then?" And at the granny flat: Andy: "It's kind of like a dungeon." Realtor: "I think Andrew loves this place."

The cabin in the woods was the obvious choice. The camera person did a good job when Andy came out of the bathroom and jumped at something on the ground, and the camera panned down to show it was a stick and not a snake. 

[Crashcourse]

I really liked Scottish surfer dude Andrew.  With his personality, looks and accent, I could see him getting some side acting gigs.  Not saying he'd be a superstar or anything, but I can imagine him being in some B-movies.  

[sempervivum]

I would be happy to watch Andrew explore any old beach location his heart desires. Adorable. 

[Crashcourse]

He said he got dumped, so I'm pretty sure he got picked up fast.  😍

[buttersister]

Quote

He said he got dumped

Yep, by a Scottish lass not remotely interested in Australia. Or as Andrew saiys now, an Aussie wife is the dream. 🫡

Edited October 11, 2023 by buttersister
Clarity

[cinsays]

On 10/11/2023 at 2:57 AM, Mediocre Gatsby said:

She was. He parked and I wanted to yell at him "I'm okay, I can make it to the sidewalk from here" like my friends would if I parked that far away. And when he barreled into that roundabout - yikes! I hadn't even seen a sign saying whether he had the right of way. When my town in Northern California got its first roundabout years ago, I almost got clocked on the first day it was open by a woman in a van who just came in instead of yielding to people already in it. 

I laughed when Mr. $900 a month strolled up to the 4-bedroom beachside home and asked "So I'd be sharing with other people, then?" And at the granny flat: Andy: "It's kind of like a dungeon." Realtor: "I think Andrew loves this place."

The cabin in the woods was the obvious choice. The camera person did a good job when Andy came out of the bathroom and jumped at something on the ground, and the camera panned down to show it was a stick and not a snake. 

but the bathroom was outside? nope, that would do it for me, but i guess he adjusted somehow.

[proserpina65]

On 10/11/2023 at 2:57 AM, Mediocre Gatsby said:

The cabin in the woods was the obvious choice. The camera person did a good job when Andy came out of the bathroom and jumped at something on the ground, and the camera panned down to show it was a stick and not a snake. 

To me the second place was a much better choice.  No way would I have wanted to live that far out in the bush.  I didn't see what the big deal was about having upstairs neighbors since he wouldn't be sharing space with them.  But as long as he was happy.  And yes, he was a gorgeous boy, he surely wasn't single for too long after hitting Noosa.

[Mediocre Gatsby]

5 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I didn't see what the big deal was about having upstairs neighbors since he wouldn't be sharing space with them.

Ha, just a difference in experience - I live in a ground-floor apartment now and I will *never* do that again. I hear absolutely everything from the guy above me. 

The friendly dog was nice, though!

[aghst]

I visited Noosa last year.  Had to back into the parking space, fortunately not much traffic.

Didn’t venture out to the bush, stayed near the coast, where there’s crazy traffic in November, which is like May for them.

Parking was impossible in the main drag which was also near the main beach.  
 

So if surfing was his main thing, he’d have to deal with the traffic and parking, rather than walking to the beach.

There are other beaches though so maybe he goes to one of them.

Or maybe his job keeps him busy.

[Chit Chat]

18 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I didn't see what the big deal was about having upstairs neighbors since he wouldn't be sharing space with them. 

We lived in an apartment for a while, and we were on the first floor.  We heard every step the upstairs guy made because the floor in his apartment squeaked in certain areas, and he wasn't a little guy!  It was super annoying!  

The first house the guy looked at was nice, but I wouldn't want to move to another country and sign up to room with several people I didn't know.

The house out in the woods was a little creepy, as in maybe not up to building code.  Although the bathroom was just a few steps away from the main building, I wouldn't like having to step outside in the dark.  Snakes crawl at night!!  I didn't like any of this guy's options!!  

[Pi237]

I would watch Scottish guy looking for apartments every episode lol he was gorgeous and that accent-Swoon!

I didn’t like any of his options either. Fancy place was too polished for his surfer, laid back vibe. Basement apartment wouldn’t offer much privacy sharing a yard, etc with another family. And the last one looked like a strong wind would knock it over. Plus, having to walk outside to get to the bathroom? No way his guests would enjoy that if any of them are female.  
 

Good looking, sweet, Scottish accent AND he gets a dog at the end of the episode? Andrew won’t be hurting for company for a long. 

[proserpina65]

4 hours ago, Chit Chat said:

  Although the bathroom was just a few steps away from the main building, I wouldn't like having to step outside in the dark.  Snakes crawl at night!! 

Exactly why I hated option 3.

I got used to my upstairs neighbors fairly quickly when I lived in a basement apartment.  Although I was amused when I could clearly hear the one neighbor having sex with our married landlord.

[chessiegal]

6 minutes ago, proserpina65 said:

Although I was amused when I could clearly hear the one neighbor having sex with our married landlord.

An apartment with a floor show. 😅

[StatisticalOutlier]

On 10/11/2023 at 1:57 AM, Mediocre Gatsby said:

The camera person did a good job when Andy came out of the bathroom and jumped at something on the ground, and the camera panned down to show it was a stick and not a snake. 

His reaction was so funny.  And genuine.  I rewinded and watched it probably five times, laughing.

I know a guy who has a neighbor above and he can hear every footstep, but what bugged him most was every morning the neighbor would pull out a chair where she sits to do her makeup and it made a horrible racket.  He actually bought her a rug to put under it. 

[Thumper]

This family moving to Iceland is spending way too much time telling us why they think it’s a good idea.  

[Grizzly]

Iceland! Have we ever been here? Ugh, we're not seeing much of the landscape because they want to be downtown. The buildings are interesting and colorful. That church is very cool. I know it's a trope, but why go to the trouble of moving to a different country and then insist your lodging be just like at home? That was a dark color throughout the whole apartment at #2. Horses! She's going to push for #3 and he's right, it's too small. Wow, she's going to schlep the laundry.

[laredhead]

The Iceland episode left me with a lot of questions.  Seems like the wife runs the family from all of the comments and background information that was given.  Selling house, car, etc. and uprooting a family to fulfill a desire of one spouse to live in a foreign country seemed a bit extreme to me.  At the end of the episode she ticked off all of the countries they had visited in that usual "3 months later" time frame, and it sounded like they were on an airplane almost every weekend.  That must be expensive, but maybe frequent flyer miles pay for a lot of it.  Maybe once they moved to Iceland, she figured out that there aren't 4 seasons like Michigan has, and to be warm, you have to fly somewhere else.

As for the apartments, why would someone use such dark paint (#2) in a place where there aren't many daylight hours?  I liked the layout, but the dark paint would be depressing (IMO).  The boys are old enough to help with the laundry, so maybe that will be an assigned chore for them.  At least the husband won't be walking 40 minutes to work with the apartment they chose.  What's she going to do all day when the kids are in school, and the husband is at work?  This is one where I wish we could have a revisit a year from now.     

[snarts]

Iceland: loved seeing a place I recently visited. Plus, the family was moving from a neighboring city to town I grew up in.

I envy kids who spend timing growing up abroad. I do think it broadens their perspectives, something most didn't get until college or later. Good to see that the kids were loving Iceland in the follow-up segment.

Made sense to me why they wanted to be downtown, especially without a car. While there's so much more to the country, living outside the city would be isolating even with transportation. 

#1 was the best choice for them, laundry situation aside. I actually liked the dark grey in #2 but I'm odd in that I feel like dark wall colors with white trim makes room look larger not smaller. 

[ECM1231]

Those Icelandic horses were beautiful and seemed significantly smaller/shorter than horses here in the U S. I think they chose the best home for their needs. 

The couple rattled off a list of European countries they had visited already. I would not have thought Iceland was that close to mainland Europe, but I guess so. I don't think I could deal with all the Winter darkness. 

 

Edited October 18, 2023 by ECM1231

[NoReally]

Did they ever say why they couldn't get a car? If it were me, I'd want one, if nothing else to spend some time exploring on weekends.

[aghst]

27 minutes ago, NoReally said:

Did they ever say why they couldn't get a car? If it were me, I'd want one, if nothing else to spend some time exploring on weekends.

Things are suppose to be very expensive in Iceland.  Maybe very difficult and expensive to park car in the city.

But even 20 minutes in the dark cold would be a lot of walking.

Yeah it seems like she really wanted to move, was searching for jobs for him in other countries.  Or maybe her quitting her job was a part of it too.

Maybe they settled on Iceland because it was the closest they could get to Europe?  They seemed to have gone away a lot.

It's interesting that they visited Europe more than explore the wild landscapes of Iceland.  Maybe more attracted to culture.

At one point she talks about wanting her sons to be more exposed to diversity.  I've not been to any part of Michigan or Iceland but I would think ethnically they're similar unless they lived near Detroit or some other big city with a big Afro-American population

But it appears the boys are going to an Icelandic school, not an international school where English would be the primary language?  The Icelanders are suppose to speak English well -- obviously the husband can take a job there not knowing how to speak Icelandic.

 

 

[seacliffsal]

I didn't like the wife-and found it interesting that in his individual interviews the husband expressed some 'concerns' about his wife-specifically noting that she was never satisfied and was always looking for the next thing.  The move wasn't his idea and she even found the job for him so it doesn't sound like he was looking to make a move.  I think she felt slighted that she didn't get to do what she wanted while growing up-especially travel.  Well Buttercup, a lot of us didn't get to do everything we wanted while growing up.

I hope the boys are making friends, but if their gone every weekend they may not be making too many friends.

Oh, and I'm going to Iceland next summer-very excited!

[proserpina65]

1 hour ago, aghst said:

At one point she talks about wanting her sons to be more exposed to diversity.  I've not been to any part of Michigan or Iceland but I would think ethnically they're similar

I would think Iceland would be far less diverse than the vast majority of the US.  Iceland's famous for having a pretty homogenous population although it has changed a bit in the last several years.  They've gotten more immigration, but the largest minority ethnic groups are Polish, Ukrainian and Romanian.  I'm not sure that's what most people would consider diversity.

[snarts]

2 hours ago, aghst said:

At one point she talks about wanting her sons to be more exposed to diversity.  I've not been to any part of Michigan or Iceland but I would think ethnically they're similar unless they lived near Detroit or some other big city with a big Afro-American population

Diversity refers to more than just race. I thought she was referencing cultural diversity, which living abroad anywhere definitely provides.

The suburb of Detroit they were moving from, Grosse Ile, is not at all diverse racially speaking. And, as an island community, it's more insular that most. 

3 hours ago, NoReally said:

Did they ever say why they couldn't get a car? If it were me, I'd want one, if nothing else to spend some time exploring on weekends.

I imagine they would easily rent a car for domestic weekend travel.  I loved that they'd already done a lot of exploring in Europe. Take advantage of the extra time off (what did the bumper say, a minimum of 24 vacation days and 13 national holidays?) and cheap airfare to easily visit so many places. 

1 hour ago, seacliffsal said:

Oh, and I'm going to Iceland next summer-very excited!

I just went for the first time in July. Amazingly beautiful country. As a waterfall junkie, I was in heaven. You'll have a blast! 

[Mediocre Gatsby]

Even though I agree that living somewhere else even for a while, can give kids skills that they can use later in life, the woman was bugging the crap out of me. At least she went for the apartment that had the most of what they needed. I hope that she never really contemplated getting the second apartment where, for the sake of her convenience doing laundry, she would have made her husband walk an additional 40 minutes *every day*. 

Things I want to know: 

Is there no public transportation in Iceland? The husband's only choice was to walk to work?

Was there never even a thought of giving the biggest bedroom to the two boys who will share?

How did it work with one bedroom open to the whole apartment for most of the day (I did see pocket doors)?

This might be the first time I've seen a HHer sit in the tub and on the bed of two places that they didn't choose. 

[chessiegal]

Is she the one who took her shoes off before she got in the tub (her feet were bare when she got in the tub)? I'd never seen that before.

[Mediocre Gatsby]

36 minutes ago, chessiegal said:

Is she the one who took her shoes off before she got in the tub (her feet were bare when she got in the tub)? I'd never seen that before.

Ah, I don't remember. I figured they'd chosen that place, so I kind of let it go. But in the next one she had bare feet for trying out the bed. 

[Chit Chat]

No offense to anybody who lives in Iceland, but that is not a place I'd be uprooting my family to, mostly because of the cold temps and the days of all sunshine or barely any sunshine.  No thanks!  The city looked nice though.

That lady can say the move is for her kids all she wants to, but it's for her.  At least she compromised on the choice so the husband doesn't have to walk so far to work.  She also mentioned that she hoped that issues such as finding a doctor or hospital wouldn't be a problem.  That's why you find out about those things BEFORE you move!!  Ugh.

Again, almost every single episode features people who are, in many cases, willing to pay a lot of money per month, but it's never enough!  I thought that $2800/month was a hefty budget.  

[BAForever]

Got a strange vibe from Iceland family. Usually the after is like "best decision ever, we are so happy here." This family was not so much. Agree wife ran the show. 

[abbyzenn]

Yea the Icelandic wife did bug alot.  

Not sure why the husband kept bemoaning how far he'd have to walk to work - they do have buses in Iceland.  I took my daughter there for her 21st birthday (her choice of place).  One of the things we did was take a bus from one end of its route to the other end (all within Reykjavik.  When we got the bus in the middle of the route - when it got to the end we were in a neighborhood.  He looked at us like we were crazy (in a funny way) when we didn't get off - we told him we were just sightseeing from the bus.  Turns out we were in front of his house . He locked on us the bus and went into his house for 15 minutes or so and then came back and did the rest of the route.

Reykjavik is a pretty small city so it's not like that one place was out in the country.

I am surprised the boys were enrolled in an Icelandic school - would have liked to hear that was going since they didn't speak the language.  I don't think Icelandic would be easy to learn but then again when you're surrounded by it maybe it is easier to pick it up especially for kids.

They must not have much money worries considering all the travel they've been doing.

I do wonder how long they really planned on staying there.

Iceland is a beautiful and interesting place and I'd recommend anyone to visit.  When went in May and the weather was lovely.  The country uses geothermal or hydrothermal energy to heat their homes and businesses - you see the pipes running above ground out in the country.

[cinsays]

14 hours ago, Mediocre Gatsby said:

Even though I agree that living somewhere else even for a while, can give kids skills that they can use later in life, the woman was bugging the crap out of me. At least she went for the apartment that had the most of what they needed. I hope that she never really contemplated getting the second apartment where, for the sake of her convenience doing laundry, she would have made her husband walk an additional 40 minutes *every day*. 

Things I want to know: 

Is there no public transportation in Iceland? The husband's only choice was to walk to work?

Was there never even a thought of giving the biggest bedroom to the two boys who will share?

How did it work with one bedroom open to the whole apartment for most of the day (I did see pocket doors)?

This might be the first time I've seen a HHer sit in the tub and on the bed of two places that they didn't choose. 

ugh... i found her to be very smug, selfish and didn't really give a fig about what her husband wanted or needed.  he didn't seem happy in this relationship at all but i guess that's his choice. 

[Mediocre Gatsby]

14 hours ago, Chit Chat said:

No offense to anybody who lives in Iceland, but that is not a place I'd be uprooting my family to, mostly because of the cold temps and the days of all sunshine or barely any sunshine.  No thanks!  The city looked nice though.

She would've gone anywhere; she said she had looked in jobs for him in other places (I remember Japan specifically). 

2 hours ago, cinsays said:

ugh... i found her to be very smug, selfish and didn't really give a fig about what her husband wanted or needed.  he didn't seem happy in this relationship at all but i guess that's his choice. 

At one point they were talking about their differences, and she said "We don't always - " and I thought she was going to finish with "want the same things," or something like that, but she finished with "get along." It struck me so much that I'm still thinking about it a few days later. It seems like getting along should be kind of the minimum in a relationship. 

I'm trying not to armchair counsel this couple whom I saw on a tv show for a few minutes, but yikes. 

[proserpina65]

22 hours ago, snarts said:

Diversity refers to more than just race. I thought she was referencing cultural diversity, which living abroad anywhere definitely provides.

Maybe, I guess.  I found her pretty annoying, so I stopped listening to her at some point.

18 hours ago, Mediocre Gatsby said:

How did it work with one bedroom open to the whole apartment for most of the day (I did see pocket doors)?

I'm pretty sure there were pocket doors to close off that room.