The People In Our Neighborhood - Part 1

HA! Got you! Hahahahahahaha! There are no people in our neighborhood! But I thought you might be interested in what is actually there. It's basically construction, but there are some intriguing tidbits in it all.

First, the fantasy. Or rather, what will eventually be on this building site. Which is meant to fulfill a fantasy for someone. Ripping off European architecture is very common around here. In the space of a few kilometers, you can see an "Italian Villa" compound, "Londontown," and something that is meant to be Spanish. It's all very twee and romantic, and brings to mind in many ways Disneyland.

And some perspective on how far they've come. Progress is in increments of course, but what is most interesting to my eye in this photograph are all the cranes in the background. Everything you can see is under construction. 
Slightly different angle. See all of those apartment buildings in the background? They're all brand new and all empty. Jeff is thinking that some near the back are beginning to fill with people, but those in the foreground seem to still be under construction. Please note the cranes in the far background. They are ubiquitous. Our building is just on the left in the photo.

And speaking of our home, here it is! It's the cool pointy topped one on the left. The building on the right is luxury condos. It is meant to open in June, and they seem to be selling like hotcakes. Although one never knows. There are several compounds around here that are enormous and privately owned, and seriously under-utilized, so it is possible people will purchase them for investment purposes, hoping to rent and will perhaps end up holding them empty. At least we're kind of optimistic that this will happen.  The tall building to the left of our apartment is meant to be a government office. It should be opening soon, and again, that will bring more people (and commerce!) to the area, which is a good thing.
And this is where I have to confess to mis-speaking. There are in fact people living in our neighborhood. There seem to be people living in what appears to be a tent village. The tents are very upscale, with real windows, and at the minimum indoor lighting. But these folks were lucky enough to be able to bring a bit of home with them. Jeff at first thought this was a petting zoo. (No, I am not kidding. Optimism runs high in our household - pets or meat??? Jeff wanted to think "pet." Alas, they are meant for eating, not petting). We determined from the number of huts that it was much more likely that this is the worker village for the building project.
But the goat guys have it good, compared to these folks. The huts you see on the side of the ditch are not a resting place for workers on their lunch break. That's where they live. This particular work site is in operation 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so while one assumes individual workers get a break at some point, the whole operation is moving forward at what appears to be a rapid pace. No one around here has a clear idea of what the building is meant to be, but the folks working on it are industrious.
I have more, so there is meant to be a Part II, but I have so many interesting (to me) topics, and it seems so little time!

Comments

[Hillary H]

Ellen, I can't thank you enough for this blog. Last week's Lantern Night pictures with the dragons were perfectly timed as our first graders were studying Chinese New Year and performing a Dragon Dance...they loved the pictures!

[Debbie]

I am still amazed that there are sooooo many buildings going up with so few people in them.