Adventures in Laundering

Last night I opened my drawer and found my last clean shirt.  The time had come.  I must conquer the laundry room! Simple tasks can quickly become baffling in a foreign country, especially if you can't read the labels.  But have no fear, I will now teach you how to do laundry in Sverige!

Step 1: March yourself to the basement and sign up for a time.  While silly Americans have to fight for a free machine during peek laundering hours, the Swedes have perfected the art of "take a number", or in this case "pick a time". 

tvättstuga sign-up

Step 2: Now that your greatly anticipated laundering appointment has arrived (19.00-22.00), it is time to drag your overflowing laundry bag down to the basement.  Once you have sorted your clothes and jammed them into the exceptionally small washer, it is time to add the soap.  Luckily you picked some up at Ikea! Caution: Washing Powder Burns Skin

1 Scoop

Step 3: Now that you have painfully removed the laundry soap from your hands and thanked God that you didn't get it in your eyes, you may return to laundering. Simply close the door and make your selection of temperature, spin cycle, and other unidentifiable pictographs. After you have won Connect Four, press start.

Semiotics

Step 4: Step away from the machine as it violently shakes, spins, and generally abuses your delicates. No, you may not change your arbitrary selections.  The door will remain locked until the yellow monster is done assaulting your clothes. Note: The time on the washer means nothing and your clothes will continue to spin long after the countdown has ended.

Yellow Monster

Step 5: If your clothes have survived having the dirt beaten out of them, it is time to dry. In order to use the dryer you must first empty the water from the collection tub.  This is not automatically removed from the machine.  Remove the lent and toss in your clothes.  Turn the knob to your favorite of the unintelligible Swedish settings and press start.  What could go wrong?  It's a dryer!

After being repeatedly unsuccessful, Google the dryer settings and turn the knob to "Extra torrt".

For the more delicate or woolen pieces, there is the wonderful new option of the drying closet!  This is a large room that circulates warm air as your clothes rest on the numerous clotheslines. Just don't forget to come back and get them in the morning.

Line Dry

 Congratulations! You have successfully completed your first round of laundry in Sweden.  You are still unable to read what are surely simple instructions on the machine. None the less, your clothes are clean.  If you feel the need to reach the advanced level of Swedish laundering, you are welcome to attempt the mangler.  Perhaps I will conquer this bad boy during the next episode of Adventures in Laundering!

A World of Words, describes "a kind of press to press buckram, fustian, or dyed linen cloth, to make it have a luster or gloss."