[Katharine]

I have been living here in HK for a month now and STILL don't know how to handle the laundry.

I am now completely out of clean sheets, towels, etc. I have been doing all my clothes by hand - very tedious.

I realize that there are no Western style laundromats in HK, but can you tell me how to proceed with bringing my clothes to a laundry? I don't speak Cantonese and live in a neighborhood where no one speaks English. But beyond that - what do I do? I've always only done my own laundry! Do I bring them a bag full of dirty clothes and then pick them up in a day or two all washed and folded? And do I trust them with all my clothes? I mostly have casual clothes - nothing delicate. I just feel like a complete idiot and don't know what to do. Can someone help me?

Thanks,
Kath

[Katanga]

Kath

I have just moved over and actually found that it is quite easy and there are loads of laundries around that do the washing by the weight. Usually takes 3/4 days. You just drop your stuff to them.

I take my shirts and it costs about HKD18 per shirt in the mid-levels area.

Don't need much canto. Just take it down and say "wash", they show you the day on the calendar to pick it up and give u the receipt with the amount !

have fun !

[travelem]

You can find the laundry shops here:
http://www.cleanliving.com.hk/shops.htm
http://japanhome.circle.com.hk/cgi-l..._Shop_Map.html

[penguinsix]

We used to go to a place that was near to our building. They new the building so well they delivered it back to our apartment within a day or two. I went out and bought for like $45HK those big red/plaid zip bags that all the old ladies walk around with (those thing are indestructible) to carry the dirty clothes.

I found when dealing with them, they are more than happy to try to find a universal language. Many of them have a calendar on the counter and they can point to what day and point to a clock to tell you what time. They're pretty easy to deal with.

I would recommend looking around and making sure the laundry you use is clean enough for you. My wife made me walk an extra two blocks to get the laundry done at a cleaner place.

[kombuchakid]

are we on the same planet? I wonder

You don't mention where you live but the way to go about it is to stuff all nasty bits of apparel that can do with a bit of a makeover into a garbage bag[this only applies to the first batch] and take it to a laundry-there is one practically on every corner- put the load on the scales and wait for the invoice - a local laundry should charge no more then $24 for a 7 pound load and about $8 for an ironed shirt/blouse on a hanger-Pick up should be same day. On the second visit be sure to stuff the booty in the bag that they gave you the washed clothes in. Why? well this is when the discount kicks in- yes depending on your chutzpah we are looking at upto 30% off - a little bit of praise and a hint of being faithful goes a long way.

[carang]

keep in mind that you should separate your clothes into separate bags (none of the ones i used to go to ever did that....)

[Katharine]

Originally Posted by carang

keep in mind that you should separate your clothes into separate bags (none of the ones i used to go to ever did that....)

Do you mean separate clothes into "darks" and "whites" and such?

Sorry to sound like such a fool about the laundry - you'd never know I have around a million years of education under my belt. But no classroom in the US could prepare someone for living in Hong Kong in an all-Chinese neighborhood while not knowing the language. It's been a challenge.

Anyway, I will take the laundry to the local place - there's an empty bag here at my apartment with the name of a place and I'll load that up.

Thanks for helping me here. I appreciate it.

Kath

[carang]

yes, separate, you lights and darks....