Posted by cynthia on Monday, May 15, 2017 in 2017 Blog post.

Sometimes I don’t realize how simple day-to-day tasks are until I am in another country and everything is foreign and confusing.  This is what I mean: I was reaching the end of my clean clothes and decided to try out the washing machine in our villa.  “Washing clothes in an Italian washing machine is probably not too different from using an American machine,” I thought as I gathered up my laundry and headed to the upstairs bathroom.  No, it was a little more complicated than that.

PHOTO: Laundry Machine

PHOTO: Wash Options

PHOTO: Detergent or Softener?

First of all, I couldn’t really read the buttons.  There were too many settings!  I was hoping for a simple On/Off button and maybe some temperature options.  As you can see, there’s this huge knob with 15 different settings, three questionable buttons on the right side, and three little trays for detergent or softener.  According to Google Translate, “Arresto” (the topmost option on the knob), means “stop.”  To figure out which setting to choose, I googled “using Italian washing machines”.  A blog (http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/instructions/laundry_howto.htm) gave me a bit of information about European models. Apparently, these washing machines have very long cleaning cycles, for example, a few hours to wash as opposed to the American standard wash cycle of 25-30 minutes.  Additionally, it uses less water (I couldn’t really confirm this) and washes your clothes better.  According to the blog, the author washed her clothes at around 40 degrees Celsius, so I used this bit of information to choose my wash setting, Cotone 40°C.  Luckily, I didn’t have any delicates or high-quality clothing I needed to be careful with.  Instead of risking Italian detergent, I brought a Tide pod from home and threw that in the drum.  I was afraid that it wouldn’t dissolve correctly, but there were no problems there.  Then I pressed the avvio (start) button.

The wash cycle was LONG.  I’m not sure how long because I started it at around 10:00PM and fell asleep around 12:30AM… and it still wasn’t done.  I ended up hanging up my clothes to dry in the morning, though I still need to figure out how long the wash cycle is (for future reference).  My clothes dried in the fresh air during the day, and I am overjoyed to have very clean, nice smelling clothes again.

Doing laundry wasn’t the only “usually-simple-but-confusing-in-another-country” task I had to do.  Visiting the grocery store was an interesting experience as well.  I want to specifically focus on purchasing produce.

PHOTO: Apples

In American grocery stores, you go to the produce section (let’s say apples in this case) and pick out fruit.  There are rolls of plastic produce bags you can use to bag your fruit, and of course you go through the pile of apples to find the juiciest and less bruised ones.  When you go to pay, the cashier will weigh or count your produce and calculate the cost for you.  In an Italian grocery store, this process is quite different.  Firstly, you shouldn’t touch the produce with your bare hands.  The Italian produce section has disposable plastic gloves that you are expected to wear while you browse, for sanitary reasons.

PHOTO: Price Sign

Additionally, you have to weigh and price your own produce.  On the price sign displays, there is a code that is unique to each fruit/vegetable. Nearby, there are scales with buttons that have these numbers on them.

PHOTO: Weighing Fruit

To calculate the price, just place your bagged produce on the scale and pressed the button for its corresponding code and a sticker with the barcode and price will print out.  The cashier will scan this tag when you check out.  The process isn’t hard, but it’s definitely foreign and a bit confusing when you go to pick out fruit with your bare hands and the other shoppers give you dirty glances.

PHOTO: Produce Scale

PHOTO: Price Sticker

Looking back on these two experiences makes me think about how difficult it is to acculturate in a new setting, especially when you don’t know the language of communication.  This reminds me of the ESL students I teach in the States- how uncomfortable their parents are sometimes coming into places of authority like schools and having to speak with people with authority like principals and teachers.  It’s scary and anxiety-inducing, but for them, it is necessary because it is a part of their livelihood.  Although all of these small differences make me feel out of place and foreign, I just need to remember to keep an open mind, be observant, and also remember that the people around me want to help me understand the way things are done here.  Although there are differences in the culture and customs of the people and the way things are done here (versus at home), these differences do not overpower our intrinsic similarities as people, such as the desire for clean clothes and the purchase of good produce.