Tip for apartment rental in China

 Where to Stay  9 Responses »
Aug 172007
 

I recommend using this website (www.homtel.cn ) to rent an apartment in China, for its wealth of choice. I was told, however, that the photos displayed on the webs do not match the reality. And the landlord/lady will charge you extra money for this and that.  Given that there are so many fake products in China, a fake photo should not come as too much of a surprise.

The tip, therefore, is not to pay anything before you actually see the apartment.

I have quite nice experience with using the website though. Through the website listing, I found an apartment in Dalian, Liaoning province.

 This is the apartment I found at Dalian, costing RMB3,000 monthly.

I called at the posted contact number and the lady sounded very friendly and sincere. Normally, you are required to pay the rent before your booking is confirmed. But I told her I was not inside China so I would only pay upon arrival. She sounded very positive about this and raised no objections.

And the apartment was just like what it was shown on the photos, with all the modern household appliances, as promised on the internet. The lady even came to the airport for free pickup. The website didn’t mention internet connection but the apartment actually included this. In the middle of the month-long stay, the internet connection broke down. The lady was a bit slow in taking action to fix it but it was finally fixed after a week. No water or electricity bill was charged during the stay.

But as a foreigner, your not being able to speak Mandarin may be the downside. The lady in Dalian speaks very little English but she asked her English-speaking friend for help. Where there is business, the property owner will find a way. So no worries.

 Posted by Anna at 6:42 pm

Study Chinese in Diqiucun, Beijing?

 Learn Chinese  13 Responses »
Aug 102007
 

I once recommended in this blog Diqiucun (Global Village) Language Institute in Beijing as the choice of language school for studying Chinese in China. A primary reason is that its tuition fee is low. Given that its teaching doesn’t seem to be worse than, if not same as, that of the famous BLCU (Beijing Language and Culture University), the school looks like a fair choice.

The school’s students are predominately Korean and that explains why its website is in Korean only.

Two forum discussions here and here will give you more information about studying in Diqiucun, including the price, the teaching, the schedule, etc. You will find it very helpful.

But I have explained earlier that, don’t expect too much of a western approach to teaching in China. The teaching method in China is simply far from ideal, be it in BLCU or Diqiucun, or any other Chinese language school.

If you want to go to China to study Chinese, what matters most is not what you learn in the school or university, but how you can make use of the language environment to speak more and learn more. The school/university course will force you to learn a bit every day in a formal way, but what you can learn outside the classroom, such as conversation practice on the street, is ultimately what can get you somewhere in your endeavor to master Chinese language.

 Posted by Anna at 7:34 pm

Short-term apartment rental in HK

 Where to Stay  235 Responses »
Aug 062007
 

If you want to rent an apartment for days, or weeks in Hong Kong, it isn’t too easy. For one thing, you are usually asked to rent for at least a month. And do prepare for the high rent. Hong Kong’s rent, just like its property price, is very high.

There are only few choices for short-term apartment rental in Hong Kong, as you may have guessed. It is probably because the property price is so high that most people can only afford to buy one property to live in. For those who can afford to have a spare property for lease, they would rather lease it to local residents on a yearly contract.

Well, you can still find short-term apartments for just a few days or weeks, though the choice is limited. The daily rate ranges from HK$350 to HK$2,000.

For those on the budget, check out rent a room. This company’s self-contained room-apartments offer a range of price (from about HK$400 for 1 person to about HK$1000 for 4 persons per day) to choose from. Its location in Jordan, Kowloon, is convenient. But do expect the apartment is small and pretty basic with little decoration.

You can also check out this site for a higher end market. Most of them are for month-long rent only. But there are few that you can rent on a per-day basis for up to HK$1,300 a day. This site offers daily-pakcage of serviced apartment at about HK$1600 in prime areas of Hong Kong.

If you plan to stay in HK for a month, the choice is a lot wider. Hang Lung Properties, a Hong Kong main developer, offers three locations of serviced apartments on a monthly rental basis. All apartemtns are conveniently located and nicely decorated. You can choose from its apartments of different sizes, facilities and prices. Other choices (most of them expensive choices) include Apartment Kapok, V Serviced Apartments (looks stylish), Eaton House (very expensive), 88 (luxury!) and 153&163 (looks like a typical HK ordinary home).

Here’s more: theV, sytlish studio/apartments, with locations at Happy Valley, Causeway Bay, Wanchai and West Kowloon, with price from HK$13,800 per month for a studio; The Lodge, HK$10,500 -12,800 per month, brand new apartments with boardband and cable TV, near Jordan MTR station and Kowloon MTR station; and the Regent Heights, with more than 100 units of different apartment types, located in Causeway Bay, one month lease required.

 Posted by Anna at 11:33 pm

What the Star Ferry pier demolition tells us

 Hong Kong As It Is, Hong Kong As It Was  2 Responses »
Jul 302007
 

The management of the Hong Kong ferry company which runs the ferry route from Central to Tsim Sha Tsui, disclosed that following the demolishment of the Star Ferry pier at the Edinburg Square, Central, and moving of the pier to a more remote location, the traffic has decreased by 15%. The company said it would consider a fare hike in the near future.

It is a vivid demonstration of how wrong the HK government has been in ruthlessly demolishing such a historic and familiar place to HK people. The demolishment has not only destroyed a HK legacy and heritage, but also taken away a transport means for the public who now because of the remote location of the pier, have to forfeit its use.

The ferry ride has been an enjoyable ride for me, taking in the harbor view and landscape at both sides of the harbor. Now, physically, I don’t want to walk that long distance to take the ferry; psychologically, I don’t want to use the new pier either – in silent protest against the ugly development of this city and the indifference of its government.

 Posted by Anna at 2:02 pm

Family visit by China president

 China As It Is  No Responses »
Jul 112007
 

During the short trip China president Hu Jintao made to Hong Kong to mark the 10th anniversary of the city’s return to China, he paid a visit to two Hong Kong families. 

In the first family where the father is a construction worker, Hu gave the family a Leno computer as a gift. It was reported that he danced a Mongolian dance with the family’s little daughter.

Hu visited a second family where the mother is a mandarin teacher, He gave the family a plasma tv set as a gift.

Hu also talked with the families to understand their work and family life, it was reported.

I was struck by the “uniqueness” of this kind of activity integrating into the agenda of a nation’s head, and becoming the focus of news reports – It would be something very odd in the West.

I guess when a government is not elected, but claims it serves the people, it should be natural that it has to remind the public from time to time that they do serve the people, by staging relentless shows and propaganda.

 Posted by Anna at 1:05 am
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