What turns a
house / an apartment into a home?
For me:
Order –
Everything has to be stored in cupboards, everything must have a place...
Estetic – I like
the small details – bits and pieces such as a small basket full of soaps in the
bathroom or a photo corner of the whole family and friends...
Comfort –
Comfortable sofa, comfortable bed, technology
Memories – I guess
the good time you spend in your home vs the sad times makes a house a home!!
Finally location!
So since I am
looking for a lot of things – my search for my home in Tbilisi was a loooong battle...
Back in February –
when I finally passed from temporary assignment to contract – I had almost 3
weeks to find a house – which I though was more than enough. It didn’t turn out
that way.
I asked to my
Turkish colleagues and my staff who are local and most recommended Vake or
Sabortalo area. Vake is really nice – with cool cafe’s and almost everything
such as banks, supermarkets etc handy however:
Far
away from airport ( where I work )
I
really did not like the neighbourhood – I don’t know why... Too crowded maybe
or too cool! J
Next option
Sabortalo – very big neighbourhood therefoere lots of options however 1 simple
reason for a no no! - very far from work.
So with
recommendation from my staff I searched for houses at Mtatsminda and Sololaki.
The issue with
these 2 neighbourhoods is the comfort part – not many new buildings.
As a foreigner –
when you search for a house the price automaticly almost doubles. I guess it is
similar in Turkey so I did not mind that part much – my housing allowance does
not cover all but most of the rent. However still when you get to know the
neighbourhoods you get quite dissapointed when you compare the rent vs house
conditions.
I do not know if
it is possible to find a house directly from the owner. As I have mentioned on one
of my previous posts I moved twice and used a real estate agent ( makler ) in
both cases.
For those of you who will be moving to Tbilisi you can use:
My first house (
could not call it a home L had too many issues ) was at Mtatsminda very
close to Rustaveli Ave. It was a very nice apartment – quite a new one too but
had many issues. In winter the house was very cold, there was a construcition
in the apartment which caused noise and dust, construction in the street (
renovation of an old house ) and last but not the least the walls were damp due
to the heavy rains and terrible infrastructure so during the 5 months I lived
in the house – I tried to be patient but one day I had enough! Called the
landlord and I was out in 1 week.
The issue is –
when you rent a house in Tbilisi via a Makler you need to pay the house owner
the first and the last month of your contracted stay. The last month is paid to
the Makler by the house owner also it is like a guarantee. So I left my last
rent to the house owner by moving earlier than 1 year! Oh well! My health is
more important than anything.
Since I only had
1 week to search a house – I called the previous Makler who helped me search
for new houses but this time there were no options within my budget in the area
I was looking for. It was so frustrating! I would not have a house to live in
in 1 week if I could not find what I was looking for!
Once all my
options were finished – I was simply depressed! With no hope went to the
internet and found a web site called Best Tbilisi Apartments! The apartments
and houses listed are more expensive compared to many other options however the
listed houses offer order, estetic and comfort J So all I had to choose was the location
and it will be us who will add the memories...
With the help of
my lovely Makler Natalia from BTA I found my new home and my lovely landlord
and friend Ia! I already have great memories in this house thanks to Ia, Zubin,
Su and all my friends who visited J
Despite how much
I enjoy Tbilisi, how much I love my new home
I MISS MY REAL HOME... Ankara
So I join the rhyme
of Marc Broussard ( although I am not a fan of Country Music - really like this one!! )
Take me homeeee....
Home is where your Heart is!
ReplyDeleteHome is where you feel home!
Home is where every memory, good or bad, fly over your head, and you will not understand how soon,Time passes!!!