MonicaRichards

Funny, in US apartments I've been in where space was at a premium they usually have a laundry thing in the hall in a closet.

CasaDelCipresso

I lived in NYC for many years...not once did I see a washer in the Kitchen - they may exist...but I've never seen one -

I HATE them in the kitchen as well...that said, I own a home in Italy and am installing one...in the kitchen

the walls in many homes in Italy are OLD...and it is a BIG deal to run plumbing through two feet of stone...so...kitchen or bathroom it is...any many Italian bathrooms are small (ok...mine is - otherwise I'd squeeze it there!!)

personally, though...and this is totally just MY guess on this...the Italians put them in the kitchen becasue they have a odd issue with shower curtains *laugh* really (!) for some reason...they just don't use 'em...ok...SOME do...but I've been in too many places now that just have a showerhead on the wall and a drain in the floor...so water gets ALL over everything!
(how the HECK is one suppossed to keep the T.P. dry??!) don't know how they do not have many, many slip-and-fall injuries...but anyway (I'm going on and on here!) I think it would be dangerous for them to have an electrical applience in there ;-)!!

thursdaysd

"You have no option but to have your laundry done at a service laundromat in Athens." Funny - I had no more difficulty doing mine in the bathroom sink in Athens than anywhere else... I would never trust my clothes to a laundromat, and I don't even use my sister's washing machine when I visit her in the UK (I live in the US), since it doesn't have a cold wash cycle.

smartcookie

There are many landraumats that do wash and fold service and they will check the labels and separate colors if you tell them to. You just need to specify what you want. I think the best service I got was in Amsterdam and the total cost was 10 euro or so at most for everything. Don't do it at a hotel where you'll most certainly be overcharged.

SusanC

I didn't read all replies so sorry if I'm repeating but most people in Europe only wash things in HOT water - the idea is that things don't get cleaned in cold water. My European friends (from a number of countries) were shocked when I showed them labels that said "wash in cold water" - they thought it was insane. Having lived in several European countries with various European washing machines, you can put them in a less than hot setting (like a "delicate" cycle) but if you take them to a laundromat I doubt they would do that - i.e. whites and non-shrinkable items only!

Sally30

Sounds like people pay a lot of attention to their laundry. At home I just throw everything together and wash on warm. It all gets clean and if all my formerly white t-shirts are now pink, so be it.

mari5

We almost always have a rental car(but sometimes you can find a laundrymat within walking). It's a great experience in Europe to take a couple of hours out to do you own laundry at a self serve laundrymat,,,sometimes in a suburbs. It's fun to talk with the local people,,,,even sign language in another language and "people watching" is part of the travel experience. I sit and read some, write in my journal, my husband walks around the neighborhood ...... We usually have, after a week of travel, 2 machines: a "dark" load and a "white " load, sometimes more.
One time in Annecy, FRance there was no attendant and we couldn't figure out where to put the money!,,,another time I opened the dryer to re-adjust some things and a local lady who had been coming there a long time was suprised one could stop the dryer during a cycle, other time kind people showed us how to "work " the machine. I consider it part of the travel experience, and usually the people are so nice one can leave for 30 min or so and experience the shops etc. along the street.

specs

Well I am glad I read this post. I discovered that "40" refers to water temperature, not the length of time it takes to do a load.

Do any Europeans, or nabobs in Nevada know why the washing powder would leave indelible blue marks on my whites?

I find the international symbols given on washing machines and garments to be of no use. Taking a wild guess, I suppose the iron with an X over it means do not iron. The rest are a mystery. Unless the international symbols are learned by every school child throughout Europe, I suspect the chances of getting your laundry done to order are very slim.

And then there is the human factor. My boyfriend sent out our laundry while we were staying in Athens. It came back sparkling clean and eventually we got used to wearing starched underwear. Two of his unbleached muslin shirts were never the same; but the laundress took special pride as she was able to scrub and bleach them to a snowy white.