The conditions of my new room in a Dormitory for international students in Łódź.

After I got out from the hospital I was informed that because of my disease I couldn't stay in the same dormitory (V Dorm) for the next month and few days. So, the AIESECar responsible for me had to arrange my movement to the International students' dormitory of the University of Łódź. The behaviour of the manager of V Dorm was a bit funny and panic, because in the moment of my come back I was at least 10 times less dangerous to infect than during the 3 days I spent in there before the hospitalization :)

Anyway, I packed aaaaalll my stuff (again the huge luggage!) and I was lucky (somehow finally!) that there was a car waiting for me to take it to the next location - thanks to one girl from the EB. On my way back from the hospital I also did some shopping and we moved everything to my new room. It was double one but separated (weell - isolated is the more appropriate word) especially for me. When I saw it I was completely shocked! The floor was with some kind of very dirty spotted brocken terracotta, there was dust everywhere, the walls were at some places blacky dirty from their original yellow colour and finally - the worst thing - FULL of BUGS - small and medium size ones everywhere dead or smashed at the walls!!! In every wardrobe or cupboard there was plenty of them :( At this point the room in the previous dorm, which I had some complaints about, seemed to me as Paradise...

After checkin' in and discussing with the staff some "impossible" ways of changing the room, I went to the AIESEC office to use Internet and so on 'till the night when I had alone to cope with the conditions in my room - killing bugs, trying to put somewhere the clothes, to clean with water the shelves etc. While I was trying to fall asleep looking around panically in the darkness whether some bug approached my bed, I received sms from my budy here that "due to some reasons" he cannot take care of me anymore and another person will be responsible for me. Whata nice situation....

In the next morning I asked downstairs for some detergents and cleaning stuff and I experienced the "hospitality" of the dormitory. The people said that I have to buy everything, even the cleaning tools - steer, basket for the water etc. because they "don't have such" and cannot provide me with them. Hm, I went to Carre-four then and bought everything necessary to clean this fuckin' shitty room. It took me 2 days to do it and to make it not shiny but normal to stay in. To make it normal to live in, I had to find a solution about the bugs. After asking several AIESECars, and trying some gear, I fanally choosed - RAID - a new triple formula! :) Another 2 days I spent in spraying all around the room and finally I calmed down. All the nests of the bugs and their roads were cleaned so I had to wait for the result of the operation. Fortunately, it was mission possible! :)

Meanwhile, I had problems with my fridge which was leaking with some oil that durtied my food, especially the yogurts I bought. This problem was solved by the dormitory management in 1 day so it was quite ok :) Now I have a new fridge that keeps also the food of my neighbours - 2 chineese girls - AIESEC interns.

Nowadays, my room is rearranged, emptied from some unusefull wardrobes, clean and normal to live in. Its only one advantage is that I have own bathroom and I don't need to share it with the entire floor. And about the bugs, well, they are still around but with less amount - only 1 or 2 I see (and of course kill) for the whole day. Actually, they enter from outside, coz there is a gap of 1,5 cm between the edge of my door and the floor. This is the only one thing I don't think I can prevent and repair. But looking back at all I had to cope with, that is not a big deal :) The whole cleaning costed me around 65 zl. unexpected and unplanned expenses. With this amount of money I can have good lunch meals in a Vietnamic bar for a week!

Can you imagine, that the prices in this dormitory which is 15-years old and not repaired since foundation are higher than in the previous one which is 5-years renovated one!? Some Polish mistery, I guess ;)

As all you may realize, I won't have only toilet stories anymore, but room ones as well ;) :P And again useful experience.

The next topic in my daily life is the washing of my clothes. Different from the V Dorm when the Laundry service is for free and running 12 h per day, in the one for International students it runs in September only 3 hours (15:00-18:00) during 3 working (!!!) days - from Tuesday until Thursday and there is a fee - 7 zl. per washing! This is freaky! I think I won't give money to this dorm except of my accomodation fee which is 280 zl. (140 lv!!!) and I cannot manage to use the Laundry coz I usually come back from work at around 17 and I neeed an hour to wash one group of clothes. Since I've learned how to wash my underwear this is the first time when I practice it in such conditions :)

I wait to move to another dormitory at the end of September as I was informed that I cannot stay longer in this one. I hope the next room will be better or like my first one at least. But we are lucky that IU-Varna doesn't cooperate with the Uni of Łódź in Erasmus, coz the students from the program are always accomodated in the shitty dorm :)

That's all for this story, folks ;)

See ya in the next posting,

Victor Tomov