topic Re: House Hunters International - kitchens. in Kitchen

House Hunters International - kitchens.

house_cat — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 17:37:25 GMT

I love House Hunters International. I love the glimpses of life in other parts of the world, especially the kitchens.

So often, they find a great home and turn it down because it has no oven. Don't these people know about QVC, lol? There are so may countertop ovens available. Need an oven.... QVC can hook you up!

What surprises you about kitchens in other parts of the world?

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

lolakimono — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 17:40:35 GMT

@house_cat

When I lived abroad, in the apartment there was a stove without an oven. In the part where the oven would be, there was a propane tank. It was always a surprise to be cooking and run out of gas, so we had one extra tank to swap out. There was a delivery service for propane tanks.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

Kitlynn — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 17:41:00 GMT

@house_cat wrote:
I love House Hunters International. I love the glimpses of life in other parts of the world, especially the kitchens.

So often, they find a great home and turn it down because it has no oven. Don't these people know about QVC, lol? There are so may countertop ovens available. Need an oven.... QVC can hook you up!

What surprises you about kitchens in other parts of the world?

I love to watch and yes they are shocked a lot by no ovens and the small size of the kitchens. I think the same thing you do just buy a countertop oven. I think the problem with ordering from QVC is the outlet situation is not the same but maybe QVC in the UK would have the right ones.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

traveler — Thu, 14 Feb 2019 14:45:31 GMT

We lived in an apartment in Germany. The oven was small and in Celsius. Fitting a turkey in was an adventure. Then there was the flash water heaters in the kitchen and bathroom.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

proudlyfromNJ — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 18:09:36 GMT

I lived in Turkey in the early seventies. My kitchen was the size of a big closet. I only remember one cabinet and a shelf on the wall.

We did have an oven as my husband was in the service and purchased it on base. We also needed the propane tank. Also needed one to heat water. So you only had hot water when he fired up the propane to heat a hot water tank.

I boiled a pot of water on the stove and put dish liquid in it to wash dishes and rinsed in cold water. Had a fridge purchased on base but had to put it in the dining room.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

froggy — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 18:11:02 GMT

The thing that surprised me the most was that many have the washing machine in the kitchen. After thinking about it I theorized that a lot of apratments or old houses did not have sufficient plumbing to put the washer elsewhere. I would hate having my washer in the kitchen. We are so spoiled. If I were looking for a house now, not having a separate laundry room (and I don't mean the garage!) would be a deal breaker.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

Vivian — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 18:15:06 GMT

Househunters International is one of my guilty pleasures. I really enjoy the adjustment that Americans have to make when buying property overseas. The huge, open kitchens of the US do not exist elsewhere. No oven, no dishwasher, certainly no island with multiple seating arrangements...to say nothing of the tiny bathrooms where, if you’re lucky, you may find a washer/dryer.

These are the realities that Americans must face up to when buying or renting properties elsewhere. I admit I get a kick out of watching their reactions. I’ve visited Europe many times and I am familiar with the differences between there and here. It’s surprising that many people featured on Househunters International seem to be clueless when it comes to understanding a culture or a way-of-life other than our own. These are people who are not just visiting but planning to live in these new locales. It may be exaggerated for dramatic purposes but I do believe that we need to know a bit more about how people live in other countries.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

Tigriss — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 18:49:52 GMT

I'm a bit grossed out by the bathrooms practically being in the kitchen. Just like the washers and small water heaters only in the kitchen and bathroom, it is about where the water lines are ran. Most places overseas are far older than any of our places, so modernizing them to include indoor kitchens and bathrooms was an undertaking especially with old stone walls. They ran only as much plumbing as the could along with electricity and gas lines. Their homes are also generally much smaller with smaller rooms that what Americans are used to. We also have a heightened sense of privacy and rights than they do. Their fridges are also what our college dorm fridges are since they shop for groceries daily. Something we have gotten out of the habit of oding.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

Kachina624 — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 19:31:25 GMT

When I see the living conditions in other countries, I have no desire to live there. What's with the lack of ovens? Don't they bake?

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

proudlyfromNJ — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 19:34:09 GMT

@froggy wrote:
The thing that surprised me the most was that many have the washing machine in the kitchen. After thinking about it I theorized that a lot of apratments or old houses did not have sufficient plumbing to put the washer elsewhere. I would hate having my washer in the kitchen. We are so spoiled. If I were looking for a house now, not having a separate laundry room (and I don't mean the garage!) would be a deal breaker.

@froggy. My sister in law lived in Queens NY and her washer was in the kitchen.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

bmorechick — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 21:27:23 GMT

I grew up in a rowhouse in Baltimore City. Our washing machine was in the kitchen, wedged in between the sink and the stove! No dishwasher, no clothes dryer. My mom had a clothesline on a pully and in winter she would have the wash basket in the deep sink and she would hang out the window, pull the clothesline along and hang her clothes like that. But we made it work.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

haddon9 — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 21:34:51 GMT

I'm always surprised at how small the kitchens are...the refrigerators are really tiny too compared to what we are used to! I've seen episodes of HH International where kitchens aren't really part of the sale. In some countries cabinets are taken with the sellers to their new home....very strange!

My son lived in a regular apartment in Rome with other students (not student housing) for a semester. The apartment was spacious enough but there were no clothes dryers. Everyone had drying laundry hanging all over the place!

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

islington — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 21:50:56 GMT

Born and raised in London at the begining of World War we had to go out into the garden for the toilet and bring in the bathtub in front of the fire for bath night. No running hot water and no electric iron. Just reading all the comments on travel in Europe brought back many memories and I can understand Americans who have never had to experience going without the luxuries we enjoy. It is quite an adjustment but I think it is so good for young people to travel, there is so much to learn from other cultures.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

house_cat — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 22:02:57 GMT

When my boys were little, we lived in an apartment in NYC. We had a washer and dryer in the kitchen and were very happy about it! It was either that, or the common laundry room... blech.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

jeanlake — Sun, 10 Feb 2019 23:25:23 GMT

In Europe, if there are no oven in homes, is this why there are so many great bakeries in the community? Sounds good to me.

I grew up in 1950s tract housing after WW2. 1000 sq ft ranch homes were built quickly to accommodate returning veterans. Our washer was in the kitchen. The timing had to be accurate for washing -- never when company was at the house -- not during dinner and not while the living room TV was on (our only TV.) Later, dad added a closed-in patio at the back of the house and we put a dryer back there. It was a trick getting the wet closed to the dryer. Heavy basket for young arms. Makes me smile. I wouldn't like that at all now. Love my laundry room -

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

froggy — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 02:12:47 GMT

@proudlyfromNJ wrote:
@froggy wrote:
The thing that surprised me the most was that many have the washing machine in the kitchen. After thinking about it I theorized that a lot of apratments or old houses did not have sufficient plumbing to put the washer elsewhere. I would hate having my washer in the kitchen. We are so spoiled. If I were looking for a house now, not having a separate laundry room (and I don't mean the garage!) would be a deal breaker.
@froggy. My sister in law lived in Queens NY and her washer was in the kitchen.
@proudlyfromNJ
Was it an older apartment building that did not originally have a laundry area in the individual apartments?

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

proudlyfromNJ — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 02:17:44 GMT

@froggy wrote:
@proudlyfromNJ wrote:
@froggy wrote:
The thing that surprised me the most was that many have the washing machine in the kitchen. After thinking about it I theorized that a lot of apratments or old houses did not have sufficient plumbing to put the washer elsewhere. I would hate having my washer in the kitchen. We are so spoiled. If I were looking for a house now, not having a separate laundry room (and I don't mean the garage!) would be a deal breaker.
@froggy. My sister in law lived in Queens NY and her washer was in the kitchen.
@proudlyfromNJ
Was it an older apartment building that did not originally have a laundry area in the individual apartments?

@froggy. Wasn’t an apartment bldg. It was an old home. Most of the homes in the area were built in the 30s and 40s with two floors plus attic and basement. Many created apartments in the home for family.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

GeorgiaJanet — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 02:20:03 GMT

That's right, come to think of it, Mom's washer was in the kitchen right next to the free-standing stove/oven. In fact, the kitchen table in there took up so much room, my chair probably almost hit the washer when I pushed outward. Mom had to hang clothes outside and in the winter had to hang them down in the basement near the furnace. I know she would have loved to have had a dryer and dishwasher.

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

kivah — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 04:02:22 GMT

@Kachina624

I'm a small female but those kitchens, bedrooms and bathrooms in foreign countries are tiny!!!!!! I'm claustrophobic - so I'm staying in California in my beautiful house with high ceilings and lots of space to move around - plus my laundryroom..

Re: House Hunters International - kitchens.

kivah — Mon, 11 Feb 2019 04:09:43 GMT

My grandmother lived in a small apartment on the lower east side of NYC (now torn down and very expensive buildings put up).

There was a kitchen and 1 bedroom --- and the tiniest bathroom - where the toilet had a pull-chain. No sink in the bathroom. You had to wash ur hands in the kitchen sink. The bathtub was also in the kitchen - and it had a metal cover, which was used for food preparation.

I remember the ice man walking up 3 flights of stairs to deliver ice for the small refrigerator.