House

Here is a pic of the house from the outside. It is pretty cool on the inside too...



As you can see, it is very modern and industrial looking. The walls on the inside are just like the walls on the outside except where you can see the little dark spots, we have things we can hang pics on on the inside. You are looking at the corner where the deck, living room, and pond are. This is all behind the high wall. The windows you can see near the roof are the vaulted ceiling in the living room. We are planning to put some curtains on them (although we love the natural light) to try to keep the room cooler in the summer and I suspect warmer in the winter. It will also keep the floor and furniture from fading as the sun coming in that window during the day is direct midday sun and it is hot.

I like that the style of the house is very simple, and that there is the mix of straight lines and gardens. The kitchen is much bigger than the one in our last house in Japan so we can't complain there. We had to buy some pans and pots (the owner bought them and we'll leave them with the house) in order to use the stove because two of the burners are IH which is a new safety type of heating for stoves. It works great now with the new pans but for a week or so, I was cooking everything on one burner and that was a pain in the butt. We even have a little itty bitty dishwasher (which I use for drying dishes). I probably won't use it just to cut back on electricity use. There are lots of cabinets and counter space and that makes preparing meals much easier. We were worried for a bit that the refrigerator wouldn't fit but it does with room to spare.

The bathroom is split into two, one room (near the front of the house) has the toilet, a urinal, and a sink with cabinet, and the other room (near the bedrooms in the back of the house) has a sink w/cabinet and then a separate glassroom with shower and tub. The tub has jets but J tried them out and they aren't like our hottub jets but still, it will be nice for soaks in the winter for sure. Both of the bathrooms have windows looking out to little garden areas that are enclosed in a high wall so no one can see in but you get a feeling of being outside when you are in them.

We have a shallow rock pond off the dining room with a deck off the living room next to it. The pond has a little fountain we can turn on in the house. It is very relaxing to hear the water running and you can see the pond from the tatami mats so you can stretch or do yoga and enjoy the zen of it all. The entire house is fenced around so you can't really see the street at all unless you are in the kitchen (the only place where the window looks out over a shorter fence.

There is a large storage area/laundry room between the garage and the house so we have some things hidden out there until we can figure out where to put them. There are racks built in for drying so we don't have to use the dryer much either (another expensive electrical appliance I avoid). Electricity here is so much more than in the states so conserving is good for the environment as well as the pocket book.

I'll try to get pics of the various parts up soon....still trying to finish the unpacking along with all the other crap that keeps me occupied during the day.