Month: January 2016

January 09 2016, 18:28

The Potomac River flows just 15 minutes away from home. Went to check it out. Also took an 8 km hike through the forest. There’s a beautiful waterfall there, great views, and a real forest – photos attached) The weather is only gray and ugly now, but comparatively warm – 10 degrees Celsius.

On the way to the river, there’s a local “Rublevka” with homes priced around $10-15 million. (http://goo.gl/xM2j0Q). An interesting feature – no matter how “fancy” the house, it never has a fence. That is, there’s no solid fence – maybe a small waist-high or a bit taller one for aesthetics. On the other hand, here you can shoot someone who enters your property and presents a threat.

By the way, Bank of America sent a credit card in the mail the second day after visiting their office. Set up my “home accounting” on MINT.com – it can connect to the bank and automatically pull transactions and other useful things. So far, it correctly identifies all purchases by categories based on the bank statement. That is, if I spent money today at Silver Diner, it knows it’s “Restaurants,” and Sunoco is “Gas.”

January 08 2016, 21:43

Day four. Visited the local school, James Madison High School. Overall, we are counting on it – need to rent an apartment somewhere in the area.

The entrance to the school is open, or rather, there are several entrances. Had a little time, didn’t manage to take many photos. By the way, the entrance (or rather entrances) to the school is open – there are no security frames. I’m sure that the security was still closely monitoring me through the cameras 🙂

January 07 2016, 20:55

Day four. Apartments. Today, instead of having lunch, I went to look at apartments. Found a couple of places just five minutes from the office, near a decent school.

Let’s pause here to explain what “near a decent school” means. There are various types of schools in the States. GreatSchools.org rates them on a scale from 1-10, and as everyone says, after Russia, normal kids can study in schools with a rating above 8. In the schools with lower ratings, you really need to be “one of their own,” since the kids there are quite different.

So, you can only go to a public school in the district to which the school belongs. You can’t get into a school in a neighboring district. But the school in your district will definitely take you 100%. That’s why you need to choose a house after selecting a school.

Properties around good schools are more expensive. There are fewer good schools in poorer areas.

I found some address near work and a good school and went there. Then I visited another place from the same company.

Features. Apartments are not rented by individuals but by companies. That is, you can still find something from private owners (like on Airbnb), but it costs no less. Companies take care of all the apartment maintenance. If a window handle breaks – you call, and a specially trained person comes and changes it for free. And yes, if you broke it yourself, then you pay.

Here is a map with decent schools and two apartment options:

https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=z8bpy1WeQxbc.kI1QVGQ3CsMw&usp=sharing

Apartment options:

1. http://www.avaloncommunities.com/virginia/tysons-corner-apartments/avalon-tysons-corner

2. http://www.avaloncommunities.com/virginia/tysons-corner-apartments/eaves-tysons-corner

Specifically, these two options (apartment: 100 sq.m., 2 bedrooms,) cost $2000 a month. This is quite expensive: 50-70 miles from here, the price drops by half. Apart from this fee, they take a security deposit of $300 (returned upon departure) and an amenity fee of $300-$450 – an annual payment for a “club membership” that is not returned. This last fee includes various things like garbage disposal, parking, and pool access. Interestingly, two adults have to pay an additional $100 for background checks. 🙂

If you bring a pet, then $500 upfront and $50 per month. If two pets, then double that. Fish don’t count. Snakes are not allowed. Some dog breeds are not allowed.

In addition, bills for electricity, gas, and water come to about $120-$140 a month.

One of the buildings is gated, with security. Pools are everywhere (included in the price), fitness is available only in the cheaper one.

In the end, living costs at least $2200 a month including all expenses. But there is no “pay for the month ahead” like back home.

But these are the minimum prices: in the “up to 2000 per month” price range, both options have one apartment available in the next four weeks. Everything else is more expensive. You can’t trust the banner prices; those are for apartments that might be freed up only in six months.

Additionally, all dealings with the manager are scheduled by phone or through the website. You can just show up (I tried), but they enter a mode of “AAAA!! A client came, what to do” – clearly not standard.

All apartments are rented unfurnished. Only appliances like a refrigerator, washer, dryer, stove, and dishwasher are included.

They are not as pretty as in the photos on the website when empty. But at least you can make it to your taste.

For me, it’s still expensive, probably will look for more options, thankfully there’s still time.

January 06 2016, 23:11

Day three. Opened an account at Bank of America. Here are some observations on how it differs from a similar procedure in Russia:

1. Through the official website, you can make an appointment at any branch across the country. The manager apologized ten times for making me wait 5-7 minutes. But the account opening session here felt three times longer than in Russia.

2. Everything is explained in great detail. In Russian banks (and insurance companies), they just shove a contract under your nose with dense small print and a place to sign. I always wondered, what if I actually started reading it attentively? At the Bank of America branch, they simply wouldn’t let me sign without looking. The manager explained every important point, and after each section, he asked if I understood everything and if I had any questions. This even concerned the most trivial matters. If he had any doubt that I might not fully understand but was just nodding, he would not move on. Surprising.

3. At the end, I was given a business card with the manager’s mobile number and email. “Write if you have any questions; I will try to respond quickly.” I really missed having an “email” support channel. Usually, on the phone, you either can’t get through, or you have to listen to that annoying music for a long time. With the same Beeline, it would have been much easier to write an email than to call (specifically Beeline a bad example: they have this option, but it’s not well known among customers).

By the way, the ATMs work unusually. They don’t swallow the card – they just read something off it while the customer inserts it into the slot for a second. Then, any operations—cash withdrawals or account top-ups—proceed with the saved number, while the card has long since moved back to the wallet. Probably not all ATMs are like this, but it was unusual.

January 06 2016, 17:23

In our office, tea and coffee are only consumed from a Flavia coffee machine produced by Mars Co (by the way, their headquarters are in McLean, close to me). Such machines are not common in Russia, but overall, it’s a technologically interesting device.

The machine uses packets of tea/coffee/chocolate which hot water passes through under pressure. It pours directly into the cup, so there are no leftover traces of coffee in the next cup of tea. For home use, the machine costs $230, while a packet of tea or coffee costs $0.56. For comparison, a Nespresso costs $149.00, and a serving – $1.1.

True, the tea is still tasty, and the coffee… just like any American coffee. It takes years to get used to it.