Best Laid Plans

Five years ago when I visited Sabrina's hometown of Xiangyang, I hatched a plan. What the plan lacked in substance, it made up for in naiveté. We would buy a new apartment and car and retire here. The new apartment would take two years to complete, which would give me enough time to self fund. We'd be able use the rent from our place in Beijing to pay for daily expenses. But a few things got in the way of the plan. First, real estate developers in China including ours went bankrupt leaving our apartment, mostly paid for, in limbo. Second, Amanda.

We checked our apartment complex today and it's largely the same as a year ago. The buildings are complete but the developer did not finish the inside decorations. The developer has not turned over the house title to anyone, as far as we know. This has led to a bit of a free for all. Some people moved in anyway - maybe five percent of the complex. Many others are re-configuring the apartment layout. Moving the stairs, moving the bathroom, extending the living room are common. But there is no standard. For those that are customizing, each is unique. We saw several today, walked around by our perspective neighbor. A few of the people living has started vegetable gardens which combined with the partially finished surroundings gave it a commune vibe. I expressed concern with making modifications or moving in before the property was officially turned over. The people who moved in or customizing are going by the possession is 9/10's of the law premise. Our best case is the developer will finish the project, the real estate market will wake from it's coma, and we can sell it.

After visting the apartment, we drove to the make tourist attraction in Xiangyang - Gulou. The parking situation there is horrendous and with the only practical lot full, we gave up. We then drove to a mall near Sabrina's parent's apartment. I saw a big Parking sign and went straight into the lot. But it wasn't much of a lot. A single row of vertically parked cars with a lane only wide enough for one car. The problem was as the lot filled up, some people also parked horizontally and the single lane was both the exit and entrance to the parking lot. So, I found myself in a staring contest with a white Hyundai that wanted to get out as I wanted to get in.

Charming sittings have losing parking situations. But not all losing parking situations are in charming cities.