It’s a true “Golden Girls” scenario: seven female friends in China bought a house where they want to live out their old age — together.
Well, to be more specific, they designed the house together. Now, these intrepid women have a mansion that is fit for a queen, or maybe even seven queens.
The women have known one another for 20 years.
Most of them are currently in their 30s, so retirement is still far off. But they hope that one day, they can move into the mansion together and enjoy a peaceful old age that’s full of friendship — and designed just for them.
“At first it was just a joke,” said one of the women, Jin Du. “We said we would get together when we were 60 and live the retired life together. We’ll cook, have barbecues in the fields, sing, and collect food from the village.”
But what started as a joke eventually became a real prospect.
When the women spotted a property up for sale in 2018, they decided to take the plunge.
The secluded house is located in the suburbs of Guangzhou in the middle of rice paddies. So, it’s not exactly an urban environment. But for these friends, that’s just fine.
They pooled their resources and bought the property for a total of 4 million yuan, or about $580,000.
Then, of course, it was time to turn the old red brick house into a home that was sleek, modern, and perfect for a clan of seven old ladies.
The house has three stories and extensive property, including a garden. The friends have shaped it carefully into a combination of individual and shared spaces for the perfect retirement home. They also gave particular attention to all the furnishings, most of which were imported from India and Morocco. So, it’s safe to say the friends went all out on their retirement plan.
One of the best features?
There’s an outdoor tea pavilion that connects to the house by way of a boardwalk. It’s the perfect feature for the seven friends, all of whom share a love for tea.
The house is a full hour away from the closest town, so the women will likely have a very peaceful retirement.
But they don’t plan on being idle.
“We joke that each of us should practice one skill so that we won’t be lonely and fight with each other 10 years later,” said one of the friends. “Some can cook beautiful food, some know traditional Chinese medicine, some play instruments, and some grow vegetables.”
Each one of them plans to play her part in keeping the home comfortable and tidy.
And although retirement isn’t on the docket yet, the friends say they want to reevaluate their plan a decade from now.
“We’re all independent individuals but we can communicate and rely on each other at the same time,” said Jin. “Ten or 15 years later our children would have all grown up. So, we hope we can be together again in 10 years.”
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