What annoys immigrants in American homes: personal experience
'09.04.2021'
Source: Jana Anders
No, American houses are even quite good, don't get me wrong. They are quite cozy, spacious and comfortable. There are just some things that I don't like and to which I have not been able to get used to for 17 years.
I observed these features in our state and in many other states, writes Jana Anders on the livejournal.com authoring blog.
Here they are:
1. Plywood houses
Most American houses in the suburbs (in which my friends and I live) are frame-panel and are built not of brick or timber, but of plywood and boards, between which insulation is laid. Any tornado or earthquake can easily destroy them in a few minutes.
2. Lighting
Typically, there is no central lighting in the living room. That is, in most American houses in the living room, there is no chandelier and electrical wiring on the ceiling to which this chandelier could be attached. When I ask Americans why this is so, they answer: “In the living room they usually just watch TV and do nothing else. Why is there central lighting? "
3. entrance to the house
Most American homes have neither a corridor nor a hall, which usually happens near the front door. You open the front door and immediately find yourself in the living room. Immediately, in the living room, there are shoes and a coat hanger.
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4. Window
Window frames only move up and down. On the one hand, it is convenient, because the windows do not slam from the wind, and on the other hand, it is inconvenient to clean them. There are almost no windowsills. So you can't put your elbows on the windowsill and look out the window. To look out the window, you need to lift it up, bend over and stick your head into the hole.
5. Thin walls
If your neighbors are talking behind the wall, then the audibility is as if they are talking in your room. If neighbors are running on the floor upstairs, then it seems to you that you have elephants in your apartment.
6. Combined bathroom
The bathroom is combined everywhere. In large houses, as a rule, there are several bathrooms. But in the apartment there is usually one. Therefore, if one of the family members takes a shower, the rest cannot go to the toilet. Very uncomfortable.
7. Heating and water
All private houses have local heating and water heating. Most often, there is a gas heater in the basement. On the one hand, it is convenient, you can adjust the temperature to your liking. On the other hand, this can cause a lot of inconvenience: if the tank for heating the water in the basement is not large enough, then you only have enough hot water for one and a half showers, and then you have to wait forty minutes until the water heats up again. If you have oil heating in your house, then you need to try not to forget to buy oil for heating on time (it is usually delivered in special trucks), otherwise you will be left without hot water for several days!
8. Layout
The layout of the apartments is very inconvenient. Most American homes are fairly spacious, with many rooms. The disadvantage is that most of the rooms in the house, as a rule, are walk-throughs and without doors. A typical example: you enter the living room, and after passing through it, you find yourself in the dining room, go further and find yourself in the kitchen.
All three rooms are adjoining. As a rule, only bedrooms are isolated. A bedroom here is considered to be a room that has a door. On the one hand, there is a lot of space in the apartment. On the other hand, it is non-functional, since the space is difficult to use for its intended purpose. For example, if all family members are busy with their own business (one is watching TV, the other is on the phone, the third is doing his homework, the fourth is listening to music), then all four will inevitably interfere with each other.
On the subject: Features of life in emigration, which Russians cannot get used to
9. Shower
The American soul is not a shower, but a complete misunderstanding!
In no house did I see a shower with a hose. Instead of a shower on a flexible hose, which I got used to in Moscow, some flyer sticks out of the wall. And there is no way to take a shower without wetting your hair. You have to wash either everything or nothing. It is very uncomfortable. Therefore, when entering a new apartment in America, we usually first of all buy and install a shower on a flexible hose in the bathroom.
The water pressure is not regulated in any way. The temperature is regulated, but the pressure is not, since there is only one tap in the shower, and it turns on the water immediately at full capacity. By turning the tap clockwise and counterclockwise, you can adjust the water temperature, and the pressure always remains the same. This is inconvenient, since you have to pay for the amount of water used according to the meter, and if the pressure was regulated, then much less water could be spent.
10. The ceilings
The ceilings in American homes are quite low. My husband (his height is 198 cm) often touches the chandelier with his head at home.
Otherwise, American homes are very comfortable. They usually have a lot of free space, air and light, which I so lacked before in Moscow apartments.
