Thursday, March 25, 2010

I Bet Willy Wonka Had One Of These—Freak That He Was

Posted by He Said

Our apartment in Beijing has a few interesting details. 

It used to be a hotel. There are three towers in the building.  In two of the three towers the rooms were sold to private owners to be rented out as apartments. The apartment maintains much of this hotel “charm” as you might expect.

Here is the standard hotel office desk in the bedroom.

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There is the emergency flashlight mounted by the bed.

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There is the Maid “Call” button by the door.

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There is the phone in every room, including the one mounted by the toilet.

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There is the Push/Pull sign in English and Chinese on the glass shower door.

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It also has floor to ceiling windows on both bedrooms. This provides another challenge for me.  Remembering to close the curtains. Now maybe I am an exhibitionist, but at my home in Reno if I am getting dressed I don’t care if my bedroom curtains are open.  If someone happens to be in my backyard who shouldn’t be there and walks by and sees the elephant man here naked, well, it’s their own damn fault and they deserve to have their eyes melt out of their head. Well, here the office buildings across the way have full view to our bedroom and frankly I don’t want to go to Chinese jail for taking off my pants.

I do on the other hand have an obsessive need for privacy when I am using the toilet.  For both myself and my wife. Call me a prude if you will.  Perhaps it’s being a parent I understand that there is only one place in the world a parent can get 5 minutes of privacy. Ok 15 minutes, but any longer than that and my legs go to sleep. Don’t roll your eyes, you know what I am talking about.

This has proven to be a challenge here in the apartment. Every time I go to the bedroom I must pass by the “Master” WC in the bedroom. This privacy in the bathroom has proven to be a challenge for both Susanne and me. 

I think I have forgotten to mention a small detail. It’s another one of those small details that remind you this was a hotel (albeit a strange hotel).

THE BATHROOM WALLS AND DOOR ARE GLASS!

I just hope my kids are not scarred for life.

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2 comments:

  1. LOL, that bathroom takes the cake. And really, Greg, elephant man? Come on.

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  2. Well, now that there is health care reform in the U.S. the trauma won't be counted against your kids as a pre-existing condition.

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