Snail House
Snail House (蜗居) is a popular Chinese term that originated from a high-rated TV drama with the same name. The drama, which focuses on the lives of the young people who have to crowd in narrow apartment rooms due to skyrocketing housing prices, is regarded as a perfect representation of reality.
The concept of Snail House has been expanded by Dai Haifei, a 24-year-old graduate of architecture, who made himself an egg-style house of bamboo, wood and grass seed. It cost him 6,427 yuan (US$964) -- far cheaper than purchasing a house or renting. "I feel I have a good life here though it's simple and a bit cold sometimes. What’s important for me is that it saves me a lot of money," Dai said. However, the egg-style house was recently moved from the residential area it used to settle to a storeroom owned by Dai’s company. Previously, some people had built container homes to combat soaring housing prices.
