My Neighborhood

Lu and Alistair Shmelev

I once saw news that a person in the United States is expected to move 11.4 times in their lifetime. I believe this is true. We’ve moved 4 times in a few short years. I can’t decide which neighborhood I prefer. Sometimes I like a quiet area, but sometimes I need it to be lively. Experience has taught me that there is no perfect choice. Lucky for us, we live in two different places – Bothell and Bainbridge Island. Well, they both have their advantages and disadvantages, but I know that a safe neighborhood is the most important thing to me. Now, I want to talk about the Bainbridge Island neighborhood.

There are a lot of reasons why I like it most. For example, I’m surrounded by natural beauty. We often walk through the backyard and in to the forest. We don’t need curtains, and the window looks like a beautiful landscape painting. And my neighbors are all friendly and enjoy their life there. In July 2005, CNN/Money and money magazine named Bainbridge Island the second best place to live in the US. The neighborhood is always clean, and our yards are tidy also. Every holiday, every family decorates the house very well. We have attracted a lot of people to drive through here. When we are back home, the squirrels always come to knock on the window to find food. My life there is really relaxing. I feel close to nature, as though I am a part of it.

There are some bad sides here too. For instance, there are no Chinese restaurants here. If I want to eat, I have to drive 40 minutes to find a not exactly Chinese restaurant. Also, the biggest problem here is the inconvenience of transportation. We need to take a ferry to get to Seattle. On weekends, many tourists come to the island to play, and we need to spend longer time to wait for the ferry. The waiting process is long and boring.

As you can see, life in my neighborhood has drawbacks that are unacceptable to many people, but as for me, I feel that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages. We found a solution; we only get back there on weekends now. I wish there would be a bridge between Bainbridge and Seattle one day. I’m so glad that we found such a nice place to live.
By Lu

Drawing of building with sidewalks and gardens with view from cotnerBy Alistair Shmelev

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