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What does the agent NOT tell you about DB?

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    Jul 2010
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    What does the agent NOT tell you about DB?

    Been in Hk for 6 days saw dbay over the weekend looked amazing, heard a tonne of positives about db, but interested to know the potential pit falls

    Wifes pregnant, will be working from Kowloon station how longs the commute? Is the sea fairly safe didn't see too many ppl on the beach?!
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  2. #2

    Join Date
    Jun 2005
    Location
    Hong Kong
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    23,205

    Wife-swapping parties, kids doing drugs on the beach, dogs, more dogs, isolation, gossip, more gossip, lots more gossip, and dogs. And kids.


  3. #3

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    Apr 2005
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    Sai Kung
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    i lived there for 6+ years and still miss it, but it isn't for everyone.

    1) it is FANTASTIC for raising kids
    2) the silliest thing when planning db was putting the ferry pier right next to the beach. i HAVE been in the water, once...but that was it. there are some rock pools that used to be lovely for swimming, don't know if they are still accessible.
    3) commute to kowloon station is not too bad. get the sunny bay bus (15 minutes to train) then get on the train. kowloon is only a few stations away.
    4) not many people on the beach? that's because 1/2-2/3 of the population goes "home" for 8 weeks during the summer
    5) there will be lots of other mums and it will be VERY easy for your wife to meet friends and settle in
    6) the BEST thing about DB(the resort) is that it is owned by a single owner. the WORST thing about db(the resort) is that it is owned by a single owner.
    7) everything in db costs a little more (not a lot, but it can add up)
    8) when you start to get claustrophobic, tung chung is an easy bus ride away... and central is a comfortable air-conditioned ferry ride away.

    you will meet a lot of people who disparage db...most of them have never even been there, never mind lived there.


  4. #4

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    Apr 2005
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    Sai Kung
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    PDLM, in my time there, we NEVER came across any "wife-swapping". i believe that to be an urban myth.

    dog, yes.
    kids, yes.
    (that's kind of the point of living there! duh!)

    gossip, like any small "town".... the village i live in now, in sai kung is rife with neighbourhood gossip! more than i EVER heard in DB.

    isolation... NEVER felt isolated EVER.


  5. #5

    Join Date
    May 2006
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    1,072
    PDLM, in my time there, we NEVER came across any "wife-swapping". i believe that to be an urban myth.
    Maybe you just never got invited...

  6. #6

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    Apr 2005
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    always possible...i still believe it to be an urban myth.


  7. #7

    Join Date
    Jul 2010
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    14
    Quote Originally Posted by carang:
    always possible...i still believe it to be an urban myth.
    Thanks for your advice carang most helpful

    A
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  8. #8

    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Tung Chung
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    30

    AaronB,
    I recently relocated to HK with my husband and 2 small children - 3 years old, and 9 months old. I also heard great things about DB and maybe it was the hype but when I went to visit and toured 20 apartments and even visited a friend-of-a-friend who lives there in an amazing flat, I found I didn't like it. Perhaps my expectations were too high due to all the great things I heard?

    We spent time in the plaza and the pollution from the buses and the ferry, combined with the cigarette smoke- was just too stinky! Also, even though we have children, even we were annoyed with all the dogs and kids running around!

    I think that it is true it may be easy to meet people in DB, especially if you are expecting your 1st one and for a first-time mom it is always nice to build that support group soon after moving to a new country. It really is just going to depend on what you are looking for in your place of residence. DB seems very contained, which is not what I wanted.

    Just my two cents. Good luck with your search!

    Last edited by seattleite; 14-07-2010 at 09:03 PM.

  9. #9

    Join Date
    Aug 2009
    Posts
    2,711
    Quote Originally Posted by AaronB:
    Been in Hk for 6 days saw dbay over the weekend looked amazing, heard a tonne of positives about db, but interested to know the potential pit falls

    Wifes pregnant, will be working from Kowloon station how longs the commute? Is the sea fairly safe didn't see too many ppl on the beach?!
    Posted via Mobile Device
    i like DB in principle but decided for Park Island (similar place with beach but more local). two reasons against DB:
    1. Transportation (in-)convenience: Either you live right next to the ferry, or you will rely on the buses. After a long day at work, annoys me big time to get off the ferry and change to a bus (standing; start-stop-start) to get home.
    2. DB is really a ghetto in a sense that many people go there and stop socializing with people from the island. Good if you like that, but we have many friends in other parts of the town and i do not want to become someone who claims that DB has the best outdoor restaurants and loves to sit on the plaza drinking beer.

  10. #10

    Join Date
    Mar 2010
    Posts
    14

    This was our exact experience too. Two kids, ages 9 and 10. We toured DB when we arrived 2 months ago. We wanted a more Hong Kong feel and ended up in Happy Valley.

    Not trying to knock on DB. It's a very cool place; you just need to know what you want out of your expat experience.

    Quote Originally Posted by seattleite:
    AaronB,
    I recently relocated to HK with my husband and 2 small children - 3 years old, and 9 months old. I also heard great things about DB and maybe it was the hype but when I went to visit and toured 20 apartments and even visited a friend-of-a-friend who lives there in an amazing flat, I found I didn't like it. Perhaps my expectations were too high due to all the great things I heard?

    We spent time in the plaza and the pollution from the buses and the ferry, combined with the cigarette smoke- was just too stinky! Also, even though we have children, even we were annoyed with all the dogs and kids running around!

    I think that it is true it may be easy to meet people in DB, especially if you are expecting your 1st one and for a first-time mom it is always nice to build that support group soon after moving to a new country. It really is just going to depend on what you are looking for in your place of residence. DB seems very contained, which is not what I wanted.

    Just my two cents. Good luck with your search!
    Last edited by pikapp22; 14-07-2010 at 09:10 PM.

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