I realise this is really basic subject, but one that particularly Australians and New Zealanders travelling to Europe can't avoid. Because of the distances we need to travel and the costs, it makes sense to spend more time overseas. And we can't get along without clean clothes - unless we have an unlimited budget and can afford to purchase new clothes every week, which most of us don't!
Washing is a challenge. At least weekly, we covered every available surface in our hotel room, B&B room or cabin with freshly washed underwear and socks. Bathroom basins aren't huge and washing takes time, especially if you need to wash tops and shirts, especially the long-sleeved variety. On three occasions in France we were able to avail ourselves of a laundromat, and this was even more challenging. Most laundromats in France have a central operating machine, into which you feed coins for both washing and drying.
On the first occasion we loaded up the washing machine and managed to feed the right amount of coins into the machine. Washing duly commenced. Half an hour later we returned, dragged our clothes out of the washer and into the dryer, fed the machine with coins again and thirty minutes later collected our dry clothes. Perfect.
On the second occasion we loaded up the washing machine and fed the right amount of coins into the machine. Washing duly commenced. Half an hour later we returned, dragged our clothes out of the washer and into the dryer, fed the machine with coins and then thirty minutes later returned to collect our clothes. But they were still wet, considerably wet. So, in went more coins and we waited another thirty minutes. Still damp. More coins and finally our clothes were dry enough to retrieve.
On the third occasion we loaded up the washing machine and fed the right amount of coins into the machine. Nothing happened. Assuming the machine was out of order, wWe retrieved the clothes from the washing machine and put them into a second washing machine and repeated the procedure. Still nothing happened. As there are usually no staff present in a laundromat, you are on your own. This rule applied here. But I managed to find an attendant at the adjacent service station who feigned ignorance when I spoke in both French and English. I went back to the laundromat, retrieved our clothes and we took them back to the room and washed them.
On the fourth occasion we were staying at the beautiful Clos du Golf B&B in the Loire Valley. I asked our host, Katia, for directions to a laundromat. She replied that for a small charge she would happily do our washing, and since the charge was considerably less than what we would have paid at a laundromat I readily agreed.
Katia said she does this for all of her Australian and New Zealand guests, because of the reasons I mentioned above.
So, we dropped a full bag of washing downstairs to reception and went out for the day. When we returned, not only had our clothes been washed and dried, but every item had been neatly folded and laid out on the spare bed in our room. What an absolute gem she was! And wasn't I glad I'd asked.
Washing is a challenge. At least weekly, we covered every available surface in our hotel room, B&B room or cabin with freshly washed underwear and socks. Bathroom basins aren't huge and washing takes time, especially if you need to wash tops and shirts, especially the long-sleeved variety. On three occasions in France we were able to avail ourselves of a laundromat, and this was even more challenging. Most laundromats in France have a central operating machine, into which you feed coins for both washing and drying.
On the first occasion we loaded up the washing machine and managed to feed the right amount of coins into the machine. Washing duly commenced. Half an hour later we returned, dragged our clothes out of the washer and into the dryer, fed the machine with coins again and thirty minutes later collected our dry clothes. Perfect.
On the second occasion we loaded up the washing machine and fed the right amount of coins into the machine. Washing duly commenced. Half an hour later we returned, dragged our clothes out of the washer and into the dryer, fed the machine with coins and then thirty minutes later returned to collect our clothes. But they were still wet, considerably wet. So, in went more coins and we waited another thirty minutes. Still damp. More coins and finally our clothes were dry enough to retrieve.
On the third occasion we loaded up the washing machine and fed the right amount of coins into the machine. Nothing happened. Assuming the machine was out of order, wWe retrieved the clothes from the washing machine and put them into a second washing machine and repeated the procedure. Still nothing happened. As there are usually no staff present in a laundromat, you are on your own. This rule applied here. But I managed to find an attendant at the adjacent service station who feigned ignorance when I spoke in both French and English. I went back to the laundromat, retrieved our clothes and we took them back to the room and washed them.
On the fourth occasion we were staying at the beautiful Clos du Golf B&B in the Loire Valley. I asked our host, Katia, for directions to a laundromat. She replied that for a small charge she would happily do our washing, and since the charge was considerably less than what we would have paid at a laundromat I readily agreed.Katia said she does this for all of her Australian and New Zealand guests, because of the reasons I mentioned above.
So, we dropped a full bag of washing downstairs to reception and went out for the day. When we returned, not only had our clothes been washed and dried, but every item had been neatly folded and laid out on the spare bed in our room. What an absolute gem she was! And wasn't I glad I'd asked.
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