There was a time when, not so long ago, I’d wake up and look out my office window to see the mountains on one end and a familiar city skyline on the other. But now, the familiar is giving way to the frivolous. [break]
My corner of the city is no longer recognizable. Instead, no matter how hard I try, I can’t ignore Bhatbhateni Supermarket looming in every direction I look.
It is, after all, a large building. At night, it gets even more noticeable, with its densely populated floors lit up like a Christmas tree.
Don’t get me wrong. I love Bhatbhateni Supermarket. Not necessarily because I like what they sell. I really don’t care about their goods.
At times, I drop in only to browse through their never-ending collection of god-knows-what that they rack up on their shelves.
Other than that, I like Bhatbhateni Supermarket because it’s a living proof that my country’s economy isn’t dead.
Not just yet. How else can you explain the humongous new Bhatbhateni Supermarket building at Pulchowk, inaugurated within a span of less than six months, considering I’m also building a house which is 1/38th its size and mine’s only reached the ground floor even though we both started construction relatively at the same time?
This is living proof that inflation hasn’t ruined everything. After all, a paisa can still be used as a screwdriver.
As I look at the newspapers advertising homes and apartments at “attractive” prices, I realize there are very few houses that offer accessibility, security and free parking facilities as much as Bhatbhateni Supermarket does. This got me wondering as to if there are similar indulgences in other parts of the world.
Well, the USA still stands as one of the most sought-after destinations for Asians to settle down in.
The average cost of a four-bedroom house in Miami is apparently US$350,000.
Please, our Kalu Gurung must have made at least double that only in commissions during the last one year. Apparently, across the Pond, a four-bedroom house built on approximately less than a ropani of land in London costs about US$700,000.
Break it down in Rupees, and it works out to about Rs 3,000,000 per aana.
Try buying a four-bedroom house built on a ropani of land in, say, Kamal Pokhari. Try buying a place for that price in Putali Sadak. Try buying a bathroom for that much money on Durbar Marg.
At dinner at Nanglo the other night, I bring this topic up with a well known real estate broker I happen to know.
He nods sagaciously while I talk, whips out his iPhone4, does some math and offers me a figure. He wants to buy my house!
Apparently, Mr. Min Bahadur Gurung is tired of looking at me looking at him.
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