Cuisine

n. – kitchen
Aménagée
adj. – with built-ins
Equipée
adj. – with appliances
Américaine
adj. – American, open or modern

Unfortunately, we didn’t end up having the good luck we hoped for in finding an apartment. The one we chose at the 11th hour with “scissors to our throats” as my husband says has not turned out to be what we hoped for despite the fact that we visited it on three separate occasions before moving in.

On first, second and third view, it didn’t look so bad and in fact, isn’t so bad, but there are things we’re not able to get past. The most important is the noise from the upstairs neighbors. Two small children running back and forth – all the time – across the creaky parquet doesn't make for a relaxing environment. If they’re not running, they might be on their scooters – yes, scooters and parquet, not an ideal marriage.

The kitchen is not that well thought out now that we’re there and actually using it. Don’t get me started again on the odor under the sink since I’ve convinced myself that it’s mould after numerous visits to google. The master bath is generously sized, but as such is too cold to actually use so we’ve resorted to using the small guest bath. Despite it’s small size, the ceilings are high and I’m convinced the shower there was designed for a giant. While it has the shower attachable to the wall as I crave, it’s placed so high up that we have to position ourselves almost flat against the wall just below it in order to benefit from the water cascading directly down.

I already dedicated an entry to the topic of water itself, but I don’t know if I went into the quality of the water. Paris has some of the hardest water anywhere and I have to research further why that is. There are endless products to help protect dishwashers and washing machines from the “calcaire” or calcium deposits, yet very few products to protect my skin or my hair. Vinegar and lemon juice supposedly help as a final rinse, but since I would rather emerge from the shower smelling like something other than a salad, I’ve just taken to bringing the Britta pitcher in with me for a final douse.

Anyway, we’ve decided it’s already time to move on and see if we can find something that’s a bit more functional. Ever the wiser now, we know what questions to ask and one important one is to ascertain the condition of the kitchen. As I’ve mentioned before, “vide” is empty and a cuisine vide is just that. If you’re lucky, it will have the sink, but that’s it. No closets, cupboards or counter tops. So at the very minimum, we’re setting our sights on something that is “aménagée,” which means that there is at least something to put your dishes in and something to surround the installation of your appliances. “Equipée” is even better since it includes all the appliances (sort of like we’re used to). And “Americaine” is the ultimate since this usually means not just any old appliance like the small refrigerators that still need de-frosting, but full-size frost free fridges and washing machines with dryers. Heaven!

I’m up to 30 apartments viewed so far, but I think my favorite was the one we saw yesterday. It was close to perfection – on the top floor with a 250 square foot terrace and views from all windows onto the Eiffel Tower. Bathed in light, it had a small, but adequately sized bedroom and was fully furnished, kitchen included on top of which we could choose anything we wanted to stay and remove anything we didn’t need. Located in one of my favorite neighborhoods, it was still well within our price range and because it was owner direct, we wouldn’t even have to pay an agency commission.

What on earth, you’re asking, is wrong with it? Nothing apart from the fact that someone had already put down a deposit on it! The owner just thought we might still want to see it and when she asked me what I thought, I wrestled with the appropriate response. “Well, I love it really and I'm sure the other people will be very happy here.” Or perhaps, “It’s nice, but I was really hoping for something with a cuisine Américaine.”