From what I understand the L shaped halls are both 18 feet in length. One L has an entrance door across from a window & opening to a balcony balcony and 3 bedroom doors staggered on both sides and the other L is connected to an open kitchen. The window-balcony area sounds beautiful and that is the focal point for that part of the hallway. These hall floors and walls are going to receive a lot of use and abuse from those going to & from bedrooms and kitchen. The flooring should be of good quality so it will stand up to the heavy traffic. Carpeting, hard wood, slate or tile: it's your choice but again quality is key. Carpeting in the hall helps decrease noise & is soft underfoot and I would choose carpeting. I like a plain color, with a pattern cut pile so it does not show wear and tear. I've had good luck with Stainmaster. I would train myself and family members to remove shoes & wear slippers in the house. This will help keep carpet clean. http://stainmaster.com/page/our-carpets/styles/pattern-cut-pile The walls will receive hard use, too, so they might be painted in a quality washable paint (eggshell?). Long halls can look a little tunnel-like: place a wall-art at the end of any long hall. The wall art at the end of the hall will seem to shorten the tunnel-effect and will make the hall more interesting. Choose a rather large piece of art that is bright and cheery. Here is a photo You could also buy a wall decal for the end of the hall: you place the decal on the wall and it also comes off with no residue. This decal is large bright and fun, but this company (& other decal companies) have many to choose from http://dalidecals.com/Framed-Wild-Flowers-Printed-Wall-Decals-Stickers-Graphics.html It seems people will be passing the bedrooms on the way to the kitchen quite often. If you're having guests, think of keeping the bedroom doors closed, in case the bedrooms are a mess. ;-)

I am so happy to see you here! I will have to go back and see if i can retrieve my posts... thought I would make them into a little book for my daughter, with photos. Quick run-down on the bathroom (not travels, no time) - The kitchen has a rather elegant sliding door with beveled glass panels. Painted white, since this was the original colour. GD's new bathroom has the doors I had picked earlier; i thought of polishing them but decided sprayed automobile paint (on a resin primer) would wear better. Especially since it is such a small bathroom, and she is so splashy. I have this finish in my kitchen and it has lasted 15 years now. A tad chipped here and there, but only needs a wipe down once a week. Same finish for the balcony doors, also split like the bathroom. We have a new wardrobe, a study table with built-in shelves, and a small chest of drawers for her odds and ends. I want to re-tile the tiny balcony, more as a little statement. Currently we are looking at Portuguese tiles, though I did think a mosaic with a funky cat might be nice. Let me see the costing. The room will be painted a neutral adobe, with bright white woodwork and an off-white ceiling. This means she can go wild with cushions and covers. Other changes in the flat; We have changed the glass in the master bedroom and living room from small cramped panes to a single pane for each section with a 1" bevel all round. Doubles the cost of the glass, but looks so elegant! The air-conditioning is being re-located. The compressors were all mounted in the bedroom and living room balconies, which looked terrible and meant the balconies (very narrow, only 30" deep) couldn't be used for anything. Not even plants. So they are being moved so that the compressors can be mounted at the rear of the building. two down, one to go. Now we can put in some nice plants, fishtail palms etc. The kitchen counter on one side came out intact and will be reused elsewhere. I am planning overhead storage, cupboards, and a draining cupboard for plates and glasses. Right now there is no dish washer, though a place is earmarked, but for now I will put in a cupboard with steel racks for cups, glasses and plates, all hidden behind pressed glass doors. This is all in the planning stage.... Pictures in a little while, they are mostly on my ipad and don't transfer well to the mac. They come without numbers... so I have to rename the or something. Somebody tell me how to do this!

What a beautiful house, Shahbaaz! I live in a similar house - a 150-year-old colonial bungalow in Kumaon. You have already received lots of excellent advice from better-qualified people, so all I would say is, keep its age and heritage character the central theme. The white tiles do clash, I am afraid ... flooring with terracotta tiles would echo the roof and look lovely. The columns and the arches over the doors and windows are amazing. But I'd say, leave it all chuna-painted - there's a beauty and softness to it. Don't let the painters add too much neel (indigo) in the limewash -- in the hills where I live, they put far too much if I don't watch out and the result is a harsh white. Natural lime has a softer, creamy look.

that is what i have added if you can see the pic above.. want some suggestions on partition that i can use between dining and sitting