lavanderia (laundry)

Today we needed to fit laundry into our schedule.  Mom doesn't have house help (as is typical here) so she does all her own cleaning and washing.

First, meet her washing machine:

I used something like this when I was in Egypt for 4 months.  The left side of the washing machine is the "washing" part, and the right side is the "spinner."  The machine is lightweight and energy efficient, at least as far as electricity is concerned.  The energy needs to come from the operator! 

First, you have to fill the washing machine with water, by using a hose.  Mom keeps hers in the kitchen, so she can just slide the machine over to the sink and connect a short hose. 

After it is filled with water, the soap and clothes are added and the washing begins.  To change the water for rinsing or just to release water after the "spinning," there is another hose on the side that drains the water.  We drain it into a bucket because we don't have an inside drain.  (We can't just drain it directly into the sink because the water is drained by gravity alone.)

After that, the clothes go the dryer, which is a good old clothesline.  No tumble dryers here.  

The key is to start the laundry early in the day, so that they dry quickly in the early part of the day.  The spinner works well to get the extra water out and with temperatures of the day creeping up already, they will be dry in no time.  

In some ways, I really appreciate this way of doing laundry.  It certainly is better for the environment.  It uses less electricity and less water.  In England, I got used to energy and water saving washing machines.  Drying was accomplished by hanging the clothes outside to dry (on a nice day) or inside on a drying rack by the radiator (most days).  My frustration with that was the length of time it took clothes to dry!  (Also in the winter, it can block the precious heat from getting to the rest of the room.)  Obviously, heat isn't a problem here! :)  I won't deny it, the American way of doing laundry is definitely easier and faster, with our large washers and dryers.  While the washing we are doing today may not be as easy, I can't help but think it is a better use of our resources.

UPDATE:

I love conservation.  I believe we are responsible to care for the earth, a task we have fallen far short of accomplishing.  As I was hanging up more clothes, I realized that if I want to be even more environmentally friendly, I could wash all of my clothes by hand on a regular basis.  I confess, I'm not there yet!  :)