The wrong way to do laundry

Words of the day

lavandería: laundromat
ropa limpia: clean clothes
esperar: to wait

Last Friday, I went in search of a lavandería. As you might expect, in Peru they're not exactly akin to laundromats in the USA. Here, they're more like dry cleaners. You drop off your clothes, come back a little later, pick them up and pay by the kilogram. In most lavanderias, they have washers and dryers on site, so clothes-washing-and-drying is, by and large, a predictable process. I did not choose such an establishment.

No, the one I chose is also a peluquería, more commonly known as a hair salon. What possessed me to do so remains a mystery to me. Mostly, I think I just wanted my clothes washed, and anyone willing to do so on short notice was fine by me. However, the young woman who took my bag of clothes informed me that it would be two days before my clothes were ready, and this after her partner had made off with to find change for my 50 sole note. I did a quick calculation in my head: yes, I did have clothes enough to last me for two more days, but really no more, absent some significant recycling. Sadly, the obvious didn't occur to me until the launderer/hairdresser had handed off my bag of clothes to someone I assume was her daughter, who didn't seem at all thrilled to be a designated courier of someone else's dirty clothes. The obvious is that two days was the estimated drying time, because she, like most people in Peru, does not own a dryer.

It rained all weekend, with rare moments of respite, and even fewer moments of sunshine. So, when I showed up on Sunday, both of the proprietors of the lavandería, occupied with fairly extensive hairdressing projects, looked at me like I was asking them to conjure up magical laundry-drying fairies out of the hairspray-scented air. Which I effectively was. Come back Monday, they said.

I did as I was told, stewing a little in my own juices, and wearing clothing rapidly approaching it's expiration date. Fortunately, Monday morning was warm and sunny for about 5 hours. That afternoon I again showed my face at the lavandería, and was greeted with similar bemusement. Come back at 7pm. After all, both of them had been there working all day, and my clothes were likely at the younger one's home, still hanging on the line. So I came back at 7, and of course my clothes were not there. However, neither was the one charged with doing my laundry, who had just left to retrieve it. About an hour and one or two hairstylings later, she rounded the corner carrying my bag of clothing. During that hour I had been nurturing a growing anger - this wasn't exactly what I had paid for, and the last thing I wanted to be doing in Peru is stand around staring into space wearing musty clothes. But when I saw this woman rounding the corner with my bag, I realized that she had left work to walk home to retrieve my clothes, then walked back carrying a 7 kilogram weight over her shoulder. This after probably being on her feet all day. So I walked home, still feeling slightly angry, carrying my bag of still-damp clothing and a healthy dose of perspective as well. Still, that's the last time I walk into a hair salon and ask them to do my laundry. That's solid advice for everyone, by the way.

Less sightseeing the past few days. Lots of rain, some studying, some preparation for the coming weeks. My last week of language school! My proficiency has improved, but I find that with every day comes new rules, new verb forms, new words, and it's all congealed together in my brain into a nearly formless mass. Hopefully given a little time and practice it'll become a little more defined.

Be well, everyone!