Recipe

• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Boiling water

One of the things I hate the most about apartments are clogged drains. They always happen, no matter what you do. I also have no idea how so much two foot long hair gets down in the drains, mine certainly isn't that long.

There are many products, each more caustic than the other, that you can use to clean out these drains, and they can do wonders if your drains are first world high quality drains. Of course, not all drains in first world countries are high quality or first world level. I still remember pouring a bottle of Draino down a drain in a house in California, United States and having the pipes in the wall dissolve and leak. Since I started travelling the world, I have seen drains in even worse shape.

There is also a danger of the drain cleaner not working and leaving a sink or shower full of hazardous caustic chemicals. Most plumbers I've met will refuse to work on a drain if you've used drain cleaner.

There is a method to clean drains that is safer on pipes and doesn't have the dangers of caustic chemicals. I originally found it on some of those crunchy eco-hippy sites, but it does usually work (Bob Vila convinced me to try it). It's also good as a monthly maintenance clean.

• Baking soda
• White vinegar
• Boiling water

1. Pull out as much of the clog as you can.
2. Pour a generous amount of baking soda in the drain.
3. Pour a generous amount of white vinegar in the drain.
4. Block the drain with a rag so the bubbles don't get out.
5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 until there is no baking soda left in the drain.
6. Pour a large pot of boiling water down the drain.

One of the things I really hate about travelling is furnishing a new apartment when I don't know where to find stuff. You just arrived in the country, you're tired and/or jet lagged, you don't know the language, and you have to get your place livable in two days because classes or work start on the third day. What do you do?

Living in Paris can be a fun experience after you find an apartment and finally make it comfortable. As a newcomer to this history steeped city, I knew neither where to find what I needed nor what places were good quality. It's taken me two years to discover where to shop for household stuff. The places here are where I now go.

Hypermarchés are another great place to find things. The best comparison for Americans would be hypermarchés are like a Super Target or small Walmart. The selection, prices, and quality varies greatly from store to store.

Géant Casino and Paris Store
Géant Casino is located in the blue building at 113 place de Vénétie and Paris Store is across the street. Both have a decent selection of household items and food. Great place if you're in the 13e.

Place d'Italie
Easily found at the Place d'Italie metro stop, there is a Carrefour underneath that had a reasonable selection of many household things.

Carrefour Hypermarché
There is a really large Carrefour Hypermarché located on 1 avenue Général Sarrail in the 16e of Paris. This place is huge, has a large selection of foreign foods, and many household and personal items I've only found on Amazon. Most mornings there is an open air market nearby with decent prices and selection.