House Hunters International - General Discussion

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, Mountainair said:

I turned it off after the introduction to the NC-Spain couple (well I switched over to Olympic coverage and then promptly fell asleep). They just seemed all sorts of pretentious to me. I completely understand wanting your children to know a second language and IMO, Spanish is an excellent choice. I only had to take a second language in high school whereas my children started speaking Spanish in Kindergarten as part of the school's curriculum which I am plenty pleased with, Like @stormy said, take them on a vacation to Spain. You don't need to live off of savings and close your dental practice so that 5 and 6 year olds can better learn Spanish. Let them be. 

If the kids are attending an immersion school, they should be able to become pretty fluent without needing to live overseas.  My cousin and his wife sent their 3 kids to French immersion public schools in New Orleans and all 3 are very fluent, one lived in Paris for 4 years (as an adult, with a job) and was often mistaken for a native French speaker.

[mojito]

NC to Salamanca, Spain

I didn't hear the word "size" nearly enough.

I'm quite impressed that her closet in NC is as big as the bedroom in Salamanca. Americans are so good at not letting go of what they have in the US and not being informed about what they might get at their new destination. 

My guess is that this couple is looking for better opportunities in Spain. Spain has free health care, but that does not include dentistry.

I just stumbled upon this little nugget as I was fact-checking my "no free dentistry" statement.

Edited February 15, 2018 by mojito

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, mojito said:

NC to Salamanca, Spain

I didn't hear the word "size" nearly enough.

I'm quite impressed that her closet in NC is as big as the bedroom in Salamanca. Americans are so good at not letting go of what they have in the US and not being informed about what they might get at their new destination. 

My guess is that this couple is looking for better opportunities in Spain. Spain has free health care, but that does not include dentistry.

I just stumbled upon this little nugget as I was fact-checking my "no free dentistry" statement.

Interesting that dentists in Spain make more than other countries; it seems that the cost to the patient for dental care there is lower than in a lot of the rest of Europe and there is a fair amount of dental tourism from people coming from other countries for care there.

The wife was really obnoxious about the size of the apartments.  I'm not sure what their mortgage was in NC, but I bet it was more than that.  Also, they probably don't live in the city center in an area with older housing stock where large rooms are simply not found.  For that matter, if she went to Boston, San Francisco or NYC looking for a place with that budget; she would find a lot less than she was able to get in Salamanca.

I was also put off by her insistence that 'the girls' couldn't tolerate living in a smaller place or sharing a bathroom or whatever.  Not every kid has their own bedroom, or lives in a huge house.  And plenty of kids have to downsize from a larger home at some point due to divorce or job loss or moving to a new place.  It's not a bad thing for a kid to learn that there are all sorts of ways to live and that sharing a bedroom is not a big deal.  I wonder what the current generation of kids, many of whom have never had to share a bedroom in their lives, are going to tolerate living with a romantic partner or spouse as adults.  Dorm life in college must be pretty traumatic for them based on the way their parents fret about 'depriving' them of space of their own.

[juliet73]

4 hours ago, doodlebug said:

I was also put off by her insistence that 'the girls' couldn't tolerate living in a smaller place or sharing a bathroom or whatever.  Not every kid has their own bedroom, or lives in a huge house.  And plenty of kids have to downsize from a larger home at some point due to divorce or job loss or moving to a new place.  It's not a bad thing for a kid to learn that there are all sorts of ways to live and that sharing a bedroom is not a big deal.  I wonder what the current generation of kids, many of whom have never had to share a bedroom in their lives, are going to tolerate living with a romantic partner or spouse as adults.  Dorm life in college must be pretty traumatic for them based on the way their parents fret about 'depriving' them of space of their own.

Considering she wanted the girls immersed in a different culture, she really was close minded about changing the how they lived in Salamanca.  

I really wish HHI would give us the real deal about why people move out of the US.  This BS on tonight's episode with wanting the girls to learn fluent Spanish so they must move to Spain is ridiculous!  The show acts like you can just sell all your stuff and move abroad as easy as moving from New York to New Jersey.  If they were moving because dentists get paid hella money in Spain, then they should say so, but also mention the legalities of it, how long the process took, are they staying indefinitely vs a year, etc.  Every country is different so it would be interesting to hear for a brief minute what it entailed to get there.  I would much rather hear that type of information than how Susie and Billy met/how long they've been together and how their perfect children need culture and more family time so they're are moving to Antarctica. 

Edited February 16, 2018 by juliet73

[stormy]

The kept saying they would be living off their savings so I just presumed they weren't getting jobs.

The setup was so over this top, that at times, I thought, they're not really there. This is being filmed in front of a blue screen.

[Pookyl]

Long time viewer and lurker. Being not from the US of A there is a common thread from those from the USA that I meet irl. They leave America looking for employment, better pay, a better education system, free health care. Oh and the peace of mind knowing that their kids can go to school with no threat of guns.

[doodlebug]

12 hours ago, stormy said:

The kept saying they would be living off their savings so I just presumed they weren't getting jobs.

The setup was so over this top, that at times, I thought, they're not really there. This is being filmed in front of a blue screen.

The only way that their plan made any sense was if it was a short term plan.  A well-planned 3-6 month sabbatical in Spain, while unusual, would be more logical than a permanent move.  I don't think they said that they'd sold their North Carolina home. 

I think it may well be that they are living off their savings only until their Spanish dental licenses come through, and they've already got jobs lined up for that time.  The only thing that speaks against that is that the parents don't seem to speak Spanish.  Perhaps they will be spending the waiting period taking intensive Spanish lessons.

Whatever the reason, it was probably far more logical and believable than what we got.

[mojito]

Quote

 I don't think they said that they'd sold their North Carolina home. 

Did they even say that they owned their NC home?

[Ohwell]

12 hours ago, Pookyl said:

Oh and the peace of mind knowing that their kids can go to school with no threat of guns.

I'm sorry, but I just think that this is an unnecessary comment at this time.    

[Spunkygal]

33 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

I'm sorry, but I just think that this is an unnecessary comment at this time.    

I couldn't agree more with you, @Ohwell. It really was unnecessary. ?

[chocolatine]

13 hours ago, Pookyl said:

Being not from the US of A there is a common thread from those from the USA that I meet irl. They leave America looking for employment, better pay, a better education system, free health care.

For many professions pay is much higher in the US than in other countries and there are more opportunities for career advancement, as well as lower taxes and less bureaucracy than in most western European countries. That's why I moved to the US from Germany nine years ago and don't have any plans to move back. There are pros and cons to life in any country. If the US were a bad place to live people would have stopped coming here, which is obviously not the case.

[NYGirl]

I usually am sleeping way before 10:30 but last night I happened to still be awake at the end of HH and then I heard it...the dulcet tones of Richard Blanco!!!  I sat  up  and quickly immersed myself in the episode.  I think sometimes wanting to have a house with character is not a good thing.  I guess I'm too American.  I'd have taken the first one with the beautiful kitchen and bathrooms.  Hell I'd take Richard and the house...to hell with everything else.

[Mountainair]

I liked the family in last night's England episode and would have chosen the same house they did. 

I know it happens all the time but it just breaks my heart for these kids that have to move across the country or to another country because of their parents. I moved across the county to a new school right before my freshman year of high school and it was so hard- I couldn't imagine moving to a new country! Especially for the oldest kid in this scenario who was a starter for his football team! What little we saw of the kids they seemed to be well behaved and nice young men but I am thankful that we are able to provide for our family without having to move 8 times in as many years. I know it is a necessary evil in many cases but it still breaks my heart for these kids that have friends and girl friends/boy friends and have to be uprooted like that. 

[Pookyl]

Hi Ohwell and Spunkygal,

My intention was not to be callous. I was merely passing on what American expats tell me. A few years ago I lost a close friend to gun violence in the US and I’m actually furious with what has happened yet again.

 

Hi Chocolatine,

Yes every country has its pros and cons. The question of “why did they leave the USA?” is frequently asked. My response is based on what USA expats have told me. 

I had the opportunity to go to the USA for work sometime ago but they were unable to match my salary. So again we can each only go by our own experience.

[Pickles]

I liked the family moving from Virginia to England. They seemed to have nice things to say about all of the properties. The wife, especially, was very complimentary. Their boys appeared to be really nice kids and were also super cute. :) I bet they transitioned to their new school just fine. The mom said they had moved 8 times, I think, so I would bet those kids are resilient and easily make friends.

[CherryAmes]

42 minutes ago, Pickles said:

The mom said they had moved 8 times, I think, so I would bet those kids are resilient and easily make friends.

We moved a lot for my husband's job as well and it can go many ways of course but my kids thrived.  They loved the lifestyle and learned to make friends fast!  In this era of FB etc they are still in touch with kids they met years ago in one place or another.   It's actually pretty cool.  That said I do understand that for some children constantly being moved from pillar to post could be a disaster and the parents on these shows sometimes seem pretty insensitive to that which drives me crazy!

[stormy]

Let's move to Portugal!

I liked this couple. But as usual, we can only spend (fill in the blank), we don't need W, X, Y or Z.

In the end what budget? And we can't live without W, X, Y and Z.

Nevertheless, they were quite likable.

[nanometer]

14 hours ago, Pickles said:

I liked the family moving from Virginia to England. They seemed to have nice things to say about all of the properties. The wife, especially, was very complimentary. Their boys appeared to be really nice kids and were also super cute. :) I bet they transitioned to their new school just fine. The mom said they had moved 8 times, I think, so I would bet those kids are resilient and easily make friends.

The kids were cute in their striped blazers!

[debraran]

6 hours ago, nanometer said:

The kids were cute in their striped blazers!

They were. I know people in the military but I wondered how much you get to spend on a home and how much is your rank, etc.  This gentleman seemed to be able to spend a nice amount for  a good home, I see others who are in little apartments with kids.  A coworker is so happy she isn't going to Germany from the states, a nice adventure but she has 2 pets and they said she could only bring one.

[CherryAmes]

2 hours ago, debraran said:

A coworker is so happy she isn't going to Germany from the states, a nice adventure but she has 2 pets and they said she could only bring one.

This is coming from a non pet owner but I'd take Germany!

[Kohola3]

3 hours ago, debraran said:

A coworker is so happy she isn't going to Germany from the states, a nice adventure but she has 2 pets and they said she could only bring one.

This is coming from a pet owner and I get it.

[BlossomCulp]

If it's a permanent or long term move I'd think twice but if it's just a year and I could leave my pets with friends or family members I think I'd take it.  Definitely not if it meant having to have them put down though!

[Mrs. Hanson]

8 hours ago, BlossomCulp said:

If it's a permanent or long term move I'd think twice but if it's just a year and I could leave my pets with friends or family members I think I'd take it.  Definitely not if it meant having to have them put down though!

I would offer to take the dog if circumstance allowed it!!  Go to Germany, girl!!!  

[Pookyl]

I’ve spent a month in Munich and would love to move to Germany for a year or two. It’s pretty easy to find your way around using high school German with a little English thrown in.

[chessiegal]

3 minutes ago, Pookyl said:

I’ve spent a month in Munich and would love to move to Germany for a year or two. It’s pretty easy to find your way around using high school German with a little English thrown in.

We're going to Munich for so far undetermined # of days end of May as part of a Germany, Austria, Switzerland tour. Any must sees? We usually rely on Rick Steves.

[Pookyl]

We stayed in accomodation on the outskirts of the city centre so in an area not too touristy. We’re not a big fan of organised large tours. We would pick a direction and just hop on public transport to see what we could see. Public transport is safe and fast. We caught the trams and trains everywhere. We did a day trip on train to Salzburg (Austria) and left Germany for Prague by train in time for NewYears Eve.

We were in Munich for Dec. It snowed on Christmas Day and was just beautiful. Munich’s got something for everyone. We’re ‘foodies’ so loved the food options. We had the best Croatian food ever in Munich which really surprised us. I also love old architecture. There’s a number of palaces and museums you can see which I enjoyed. Marienplatz is a must see, even though it’s as touristy as. If you’re into cars you have eg BMW museum, if you’re into sport there’s a massive stadium to explore, if you’re into classical music it’s everywhere etc etc.

If the weather had been less wintry we would’ve explored more.

We also went to Vienna and Cesky Krumlov after Prague on the same trip.

[chocolatine]

14 hours ago, chessiegal said:

We're going to Munich for so far undetermined # of days end of May as part of a Germany, Austria, Switzerland tour. Any must sees? We usually rely on Rick Steves.

 

14 hours ago, Pookyl said:

Marienplatz is a must see, even though it’s as touristy as. If you’re into cars you have eg BMW museum, if you’re into sport there’s a massive stadium to explore, if you’re into classical music it’s everywhere etc etc.

These are all great suggestions. I'd like to add the English Garden to the list, and if you're into art, the Pinakothek museums.

[scrb]

Munich center is rather compact.  There aren't as many old buildings left.  So there are a lot of day trip opportunities out of Munich.

Salzburg for instance isn't that far out but if you're going to Austria anyways, then you don't have to do a day trip to Munich.

You can get out to the alps, like Zugspitze, the tallest mountain in Germany.  There are alpine villages in the area around there.

[biakbiak]

Vietnam I can't imagine living it the tgird house with those huge glass doors that let in nearly all the light in the living space so closing the curtains during the day isn't really an option. I wonder how many peoplw peer in thinking its a store. I would have gone for the first one.

[Kohola3]

I guess the heat must not bother them but the girl in Hanoi always seems to be sweating in the up close shots.  

[mojito]

South Africa to Viet Nam

I love that the woman wants to immerse herself in the culture, just as long as she can have accommodations that are nicer than most people's. 

Hard for me to relate to people who are so desperate for company that they have to be in touch with someone else while they're cooking. What's wrong with a little "me" time?

Edited February 20, 2018 by mojito

[doodlebug]

2 hours ago, mojito said:

South Africa to Viet Nam

I love that the woman wants to immerse herself in the culture, just as long as she can have accommodations that are nicer than most people's. 

Hard for me to relate to people who are so desperate for company that they have to be in touch with someone else while they're cooking. What's wrong with a little "me" time?

I thought the same thing.  She was very excited about 'cultural immersion' as long as she had a bathtub, large rooms, a second bedroom and who knows what all.  

I also agree about all the people on these shows that insist they cannot possibly work in the kitchen unless they can see and interact with the rest of the house the whole time.  It's especially galling when people with school-aged kids insist on being able to watch their kids hang out in the family room.  What is it they think is going to happen if the kids are out of sight for a couple minutes?

[chessiegal]

Quote

What is it they think is going to happen if the kids are out of sight for a couple minutes?

If they are my grandkids, Mom says when they get quiet something's going on. She recently found them merrily stuffing toilet paper down the toilet.

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, doodlebug said:

What is it they think is going to happen if the kids are out of sight for a couple minutes?

I (and all of my friends and family) grew up in homes with walls.  In some families there were 7 or more kids and very single one of us lived to tell the tale.  No open concept, no "sight lines".  They'll survive.  I get so sick of the helicopter parenting of the special snowflakes.

[mojito]

Quote

I (and all of my friends and family) grew up in homes with walls.  In some families there were 7 or more kids and very single one of us lived to tell the tale.

Of course, back then, there were more eyes on us because of all the siblings. If someone wasn't playing stool pigeon (not healthy in a large family) and getting Mom to check on us, there were still others available to clean up the mess--sometimes blood--and otherwise cover up our crimes. We were little mobsters and our parents were clueless!  Kids today just don't understand teamwork like we did.  ; ) 

Kidding aside, I agree with you, though. I've asked people over the years if they ever knew kids who died because of accidents in the home (I didn't grow up in a farming community, mind you, and we didn't have swimming pools or guns in the home), and almost nobody had a story to tell. I was 14 before I knew of a kid dying. However, I didn't even know her, and it was a vehicle accident.

To me it seems that parents now seem more concerned with communicating with their children (all the time) and overseeing their activity (all the time). You would think that of all places, the home would be the one place a kid could be left to entertain himself and learn to be a little independent. I suspect there's far too much hovering going on instead. Could these parents be the victims of hovering parents and that's why they can't cook in the kitchen alone?

[chessiegal]

11 minutes ago, mojito said:

To me it seems that parents now seem more concerned with communicating with their children (all the time) and overseeing their activity (all the time). You would think that of all places, the home would be the one place a kid could be left to entertain himself and learn to be a little independent. I suspect there's far too much hovering going on instead. Could these parents be the victims of hovering parents and that's why they can't cook in the kitchen alone?

That's not the case with my 2 step-daughters. They are happy to let their kids alone to play. And they do.

Edited February 21, 2018 by chessiegal

[CherryAmes]

For me it's all about the age of the child.  I certainly didn't leave my babies, toddlers or pre-schoolers alone (least of all a pre-schooler and a toddler alone together!!) unless they were safely in bed but of course as they got older that changed.  These people who must have a "line of sight" with kids who are of school age are going to be in for a shock when those kids becomes teenagers.

Edited February 21, 2018 by CherryAmes

[debraran]

I guess I'm odd, I grew up with walls and my colonial has walls. Sure it's nice if you entertain a lot but it's much noisier too. I like being in the dining room and only having a door into the kitchen and living room. Slight noise reduction is fine with me. Somehow I survived and my 3 kids without me watching 24 hours. I think they were probably entertaining themselves alone more because I wasn't right there.

Hey, if they want to hover,they can get a camera and spy on them or have them play in the kitchen like my Mom did when I was toddling.

I always hope like the "have to have a dryer" it's just an issue they think makes sense since they have children. I hope. ; )

[chocolatine]

Wroclaw, Poland episode last night: It was uncomfortable to watch everyone skirt around the issue of racism in Poland without addressing it directly. The African American HH mentioned several times that he wanted his apartment to be in a secure building, and ended up going with a place in a gated community. At the end he said that even though he'd expected "problems" he hasn't had any so far. The realtor pointedly described the city as "multicultural" I guess to reassure him.

[Ohwell]

13 minutes ago, chocolatine said:

Wroclaw, Poland episode last night: It was uncomfortable to watch everyone skirt around the issue of racism in Poland without addressing it directly. The African American HH mentioned several times that he wanted his apartment to be in a secure building, and ended up going with a place in a gated community. At the end he said that even though he'd expected "problems" he hasn't had any so far. The realtor pointedly described the city as "multicultural" I guess to reassure him.

Dang, I missed that one.  Why did he say he was moving there?

[chocolatine]

2 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

Dang, I missed that one.  Why did he say he was moving there?

He was offered a job in IT; he said it was a great opportunity. He has an African American friend who also lives there and helped him with the house hunt, so apparently Wroclaw does have some diversity, and at the end of the episode they also showed him with some Polish friends "entertaining" in his apartment. I really hope the situation is changing for the better in Poland, but they've had a long history of systemic discrimination against pretty much every ethnic and religious minority.

[Ohwell]

Ok, thanks for the info.  That's interesting about Poland because it's one of those countries you don't hear much about.  For some reason, I wouldn't have thought that they were so discriminatory.  Oh well.  All I can say is, that must be one hell of a job.

[chocolatine]

37 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

Ok, thanks for the info.  That's interesting about Poland because it's one of those countries you don't hear much about.  For some reason, I wouldn't have thought that they were so discriminatory.  Oh well.  All I can say is, that must be one hell of a job.

I've lived on both sides of it - former USSR and Germany - so I've read and heard a lot about Poland over time. I want to believe that things are slowly getting better, but recent developments such as refusing to take in refugees from Africa and the Middle East and trying to pass a law that prohibits mentioning Poland's involvement in the Holocaust aren't exactly encouraging.

On the one hand I think it's important to have an influx of a more diverse population into Poland because without it nothing will change, but on the other hand, I personally wouldn't be comfortable living there under the current government.

Edited February 23, 2018 by chocolatine

[mojito]

Wroclaw, Poland

I don't know anything about Poland, but reading the discussion above, I thought I remembered learning about something remarkable a few years back. And yes, it was in Poland. More power to those guys; I hope they help bring about change.

Quote

...but they've had a long history of systemic discrimination against pretty much every ethnic and religious minority.

Hmm, sounds like another place I know very well. And it seems to be getting worse of late.

[chocolatine]

43 minutes ago, mojito said:

Hmm, sounds like another place I know very well. And it seems to be getting worse of late.

Poland is more like the US was in the 50s/60s in that respect.

[biakbiak]

If I was the daughter moving from Maine to Australia, I don't think 10,000 miles would be far enough away from that mother.  

[morgan]

17 hours ago, biakbiak said:

If I was the daughter moving from Maine to Australia, I don't think 10,000 miles would be far enough away from that mother.  

Honestly I thought she was playing the role she was assigned.  They seemed to have a great relationship so guessing she isn’t as bad as she came across.  

[biakbiak]

1 minute ago, morgan said:

Honestly I thought she was playing the role she was assigned.  They seemed to have a great relationship so guessing she isn’t as bad as she came across.  

To each there own, several times the daughter seemed actively annoyed. I still judge peopke for their behavior on this show even if they are "acting" she still chose to play the role of overbearing asshole.

[juliet73]

17 hours ago, biakbiak said:

If I was the daughter moving from Maine to Australia, I don't think 10,000 miles would be far enough away from that mother.  

I totally agree!  During the introduction the daughter mentioned how she wanted to be on her own, experience life, etc, and I thought why does she have to go to the opposite side of the world to do that?  Then her mother shows up...UGH!!!  She was the worst!  I don't understand why her mom was so insistent on having a roommate.  She was acting like the roommate was going to be her daughter's BFF and personal security guard.  I can't imagine having this woman as a mother!  Her twenty something adult daughter was so excited about this great opportunity only to have her mom dismiss her wants and likes, have no faith in her decisions, and basically tell her everything she was doing was wrong!  I'm so glad the daughter chose the studio instead of the place her mother "STRONGLY ENCOURAGED" her to pick.  I'm sure it felt like a mansion compared to the ship cabin she had been living in for the last three years. It had everything - dishwasher, W&D, no spare room for mom.  LOL! I think she'll do well out in Australia - I hope to see her (not the mom) in a future WATN episode.

[Kohola3]

Loved the Ghent Realtor - "I'm wondering if I am looking for an apartment for them or her cats."   Hee!