Moving to the Netherlands for my exchange program has been full of unexpected twists, but I never thought I’d be so baffled by… laundry. Back home, I’d barely touched a washing machine, and suddenly I found myself staring at one covered in Dutch instructions.
Desperate for help, I turned to Chat GPT. I thought, why not? And honestly, it ended up saving my sanity. It walked me through every single step on the way—what cycle to choose, what all those weird little symbols meant, and even how to use the dryer without shrinking my clothes into toddler-sized outfits. It even taught me on how to properly sort laundry (colors, whites, blacks etc) and told me to turn my jeans inside out to prevent wear and tear. Who knew laundry had so many rules?
But here’s where things got even more interesting, once I got the hang of the laundry, I realized AI could help with pretty much every other confusing appliance in the house. Oven, dishwasher, heater—you name it. I’d just snap a picture, and the AI would recognize the model and brand and give me a step-by-step guide on how to use it. It was like having a dutch roommate in my pocket, ready to jump in whenever I needed some help.
As someone who hates reading manuals (especially when it’s in another language), this was a total game changer. Take my heater, for example. I had no clue how to work it, but I snapped a pic, and boom—the AI told me exactly what to do in my own language (Portuguese). It made things that felt super overwhelming, surprisingly simple.
Looking back, it’s hilarious that I learned so much about laundry and appliances from Chat GPT. It didn’t just save me from a few laundry mishaps—it gave me the confidence to tackle all these little “challenges” I used to avoid. Now I’m the one sharing tips with my neighbors, who were just as lost as I was when we first got here.
It’s crazy how one tool turned what could’ve been a stressful situation into an opportunity to learn and feel more settled here in my apartment in the Netherlands. If I can conquer Dutch appliances with a little AI help, I’m pretty sure I can take on anything else that comes my way!
