Hug your washing machine!

Today has been a gorgeous day--something we've come to really appreciate, given the downright nasty weather we've had some days since arriving (and rainy, cold weather really makes village living tough, since the roads turn to sludge, the water out of the tap is ice cold and the bathroom is in a building only accessible by going outside). I've taken advantage of the nice weather by doing our laundry, always a daunting task and never something to be undertaken when it's rainy or cold.

Our host family doesn't have a washing machine, so all laundry is done the old fashioned way, by hand in a tub. Then we hang it out to dry and hope the sun and breeze help move things along. I'm starting to get the hang of doing laundry this way, but my hands (especially my knuckles!) are still not entirely accustomed. And unfortunately, in this gender-divided society, laundry is "women's work" so Sam doesn't get to help me. This has resulted in us wearing clothes well past what we'd consider to be at an acceptable level of cleanliness. Sam does feel guilty about not helping out, though, and promises to pay me back by doing all the laundry for four years when we get back stateside.

My new washing machine


My new dryer