Laundry

Several of you have asked about how we do the laundry here in Rome. It is definitely different from what I do at home.
First of all, the washing machine is quite small. I can only put about 6-8 kid-sized pieces of clothing in at a time. The washing machine takes about an hour to run. When the wash is done, I either hang it outside or on the drying rack in the house. There is a dryer, but it uses a lot of energy, only dries a few pieces of clothing at a time (about 1/3 of the washer load), and we hear that it shrinks things. Since things dry fastest outside, I have to do a load of laundry in the morning, and then hang it outside only when I am sure it is not going to rain. Fortunately, the drying rack we have is large, so I can use that when it is raining or for the clothes I have to bring inside at night. Most clothing dries in a day on the rack. (Jeans and sweatshirts take much longer.)

How will I do laundry differently when I get back to South Bend? Well, I cannot wait to get back to my big washing machine, first of all. But, I think we will get a bigger drying rack for the basement and I will try to make a better effort to air dry clothing instead of always using the dryer.
-Terri