After two nights, we moved to a new Airbnb—a house with a small kitchen, cozy living room, and two modest bedrooms. With no convenience store nearby and no staff to call for help, our real New Zealand life was beginning.
Then we headed to the viewing my husband had booked. A large, worn two-story house with a spacious yard. The real estate agent spoke fluent Korean—what a relief. So many doors, I kept getting lost. Walking through, I spotted a Korean comic on the bookshelf.
I could already picture our three girls running through the house and yard. Everything was way old, but our kids, used to tiptoeing in apartments, would finally thunder through like the Totoro sisters.
We sent the application by that evening. The next day, we got a call from the agent—the landlord wanted us. Move-in was a month away, but the relief was overwhelming. What we'd expected to take one or two months took just two or three days.
Later, when I wondered if it was beginner's luck, my husband said, "partly true, but it's well-prepared beginner's luck." I recalled the time he spent on studying rental markets and school zones from Korea, booking viewings before we even arrived—yes, this fortune came from his endless efforts.
