Our apartment building has 15 floors, most of which are populated entirely by French. Each floor (except the first) has a staircase and balcony at either end, elevator access, and 5 apartments. The three even-numbered apartments are on one side and have four bedrooms each. The two odd-numbered rooms are opposite and each have six bedrooms The elevators are on the same side as the even apartments, and there is a small laundry room at one end of the side with the odd apartments. I received a room in one of the even apartments.
This picture shows our hallway and combined living-dining area. We were provided with six mugs, and the TV is hooked up to a cable network. Every apartment has a few pieces of art such as these on the interior of the front wall. Yes, below the artwork is a radiator, and it functions perfectly. In the right of the photo is the hallway that runs the length of the apartment and gives access to the six bedrooms.
This shows the combined living space from the other direction. We never turn the lights on in that half of the hallway because no one lives in apartments E or F. The kitchen area is provided with a refrigerator-freezer, a hotplate, a wok and cover, an exhaust fan, a microwave, and a water boiler, which can be seen on the floor behind the upper right corner of the couch.
This is my room as seen from the doorway into the hall. As you enter, the lights are on the wall between the front door and the bathroom door. The bathroom is in the closet-like space to the right. Each resident has their own private bathroom in their bedroom. behind the bathroom is the bedroom itself. The door at the rear provides access to the small windowed balcony beyond. On the wall to the left, before the door to the balcony, is another, smaller radiator with which each room is equipped. One of the first things I did upon arrival was to open all the valves and turn it up to full-blast. It is small, but quite effective. I have made hardly any use of the air conditioner-heater mounted on the rear wall above the window to the balcony.
This is the small bathroom that each person is provided. Even though it is small, it is adequate for being used by only one person. The toilet is next to the sink, hidden by the door. The towels are provided for you, as is your first roll of toilet paper.
The bed is lofted above a series of cabinets. The mattress, pillow, and bedclothes are provided. Inside one of the cabinets is a pull-put rack for hanging clothes. Another is divided with a small cupboard on top and a larger storage space below. The third cabinet also contains a small cupboard, along with a hotel-style safe. At the foot of the bed is a small cubby with a storage space below it. When you first arrive, the desk is tucked into this storage space. In the cubby are a desk lamp, a remote control for the air conditioner-heater, and an air freshener that you can plug into the wall if you want to. On the wall next to the head of the bed is a pocket with a small remote control that works the overhead light, so that when you are going to sleep you don't have to leave your bed to turn off this light. There is a small Ethernet cable almost concealed behind the foot of the bed, so that you can connect your computer to the internet without bothering about the apartment's Wi-Fi. The curtain can be pulled closed to conceal the balcony and give you some privacy from the outside world.
Finally, here is the balcony. There are a door and window that open from the bedroom onto the balcony. Each room has its own balcony. The window opening to the outside from the balcony can be opened about 6 inches on each end, and is equipped with retractable bug screens. There is a light in the ceiling of the balcony that is worked by a switch on the bedroom side of the balcony door. On the balcony there is a small cabinet for drying clothes in and storing things to dry clothes with. There is a bar hanging from the ceiling of the balcony from which clothes can be hung to dry. Here in China, air drying clothes is the norm and using a drying machine is unusual, which is why each laundry room is only equipped with one of them.