Almost all the neighbors in a building are Internet celebrity ladies, and in Hangzhou, this is not a fantasy, but the daily life of Regent International Apartment. When night falls, this luxury building becomes a glittering sea of live broadcasts, where more than 20,000 dream-chasing Internet celebrity ladies are busy.
Regent International, during the day, it is an upscale serviced apartment by the Qiantang River, with a cool six-star lobby, and at night it becomes the largest group rental building in Hangzhou. But don't be fooled by its luxurious appearance, some people say that this is a holy place for tea tasting, and some people say that this is a large car repair factory, but what kind of tea is it tasting? What kind of car is being repaired? We don't know. This building has 1Behind the 20,000-room building, there are many stories you wouldn't expect.
When you walk into Hangzhou Regent International Apartment, you may be struck by its impressively luxurious appearance. This towering building, with its blue glass curtain wall, sparkles in the sun, as if it is a shining pearl on the banks of the Qiantang River. At 208 meters high, this modern landmark can be seen from a distance.
Take a closer look and you'll notice that the building's two main towers are connected to form an elegant "S" shape. This design is not only beautiful, but also symbolizes the tide of the Qianjiang River, giving people a sense of dynamism and vitality. The English logo "Regent International" at the door shines in the sun, which looks extraordinarily foreign and exudes an international temperament.
As soon as you enter the lobby, you will be struck by the 10-meter-high ceilings, the design of the lobby is elegant and grand, with golden decorations and gorgeous lighting to make you feel as if you have stepped into a palace. It is said that the design here was created by the main designer of the seven-star hotel Sands Hotel in Singapore, and every detail reveals luxury.
But as you begin to dig deeper into the building, you may find that this luxury is only a façade. As you walk into the corridors and rooms inside, the sense of luxury begins to fade and is replaced by a crowded and hectic atmosphere. The spacious rooms were divided into small single rooms, some of which were only a few square meters in size. These small rooms are closely packed and there is little extra space.
The roar of the air conditioner, the hurried footsteps in the hallways, and the dense house numbers – all of this tells you that this seemingly luxurious building is actually a typical boarding house. It is populated by young people from all over the world who are pursuing their dreams, and many of them come here to become stars on the internet.
The rooms here are cleverly divided into small rooms, each of which is a world of one person, but sometimes unbelievably small.
In these small partitioned rooms, thousands of young people live, most of them Internet celebrity anchors from all over the country. The corridors here are narrow and long, dimly lit, and the paint on the walls has peeled off a little, giving it a shabby feel. From time to time, there are sounds in the hallway: someone is live, someone is chatting, and someone is practicing a song or dance.
The living conditions in these small rooms are far from what one would expect. The space is cramped, some rooms don't even have windows, and ventilation and lighting are big problems. The people who live there have to do their daily lives and work in such an environment. Although many of them are pursuing their dreams, the realities of life are quite tough.
Shared facilities are also an issue. For example, more than a dozen people may need to share the same restroom and bathroom, which is especially problematic during rush hour. Moreover, such a dense living style also brings safety hazards, especially the risk of fire. Due to the excessive segmentation of the rooms, many residential units are not equipped with the necessary fire protection facilities, such as sprinklers and smoke alarms, which can lead to serious consequences in case of an emergency.
Despite the difficult living conditions, Regent International has always maintained a singular appeal. For many young influencers, it's more than just a place to live, it's a starting point for them to achieve their dreams. Each small room is a small live studio, where they connect to the outside world and share their talents and dreams.
This aspect of Regent International Residences shows a paradoxical aspect of urbanization: on the one hand, the desire and hard work of young people to realize their dreams, and on the other hand, the increasingly severe living conditions in the city. The lives of these young people are both challenges and opportunities, and their stories are a part of the city that cannot be ignored. True urban development is not only about the height of buildings and the scale of economy, but also about the efforts to improve the quality of life of every citizen.