So it's that time of year again where rooms need to be packed, emptied and cleaned. Almost everybody in the hostel has the same thought, "I don't have that much stuff, it will be quick to pack up", until you're rushing around your room half-dressed because mom is coming in a few minutes and those mugs that have been staring at you all year long are now giving you that disappointed and shame yielding look, knowing that you're finally going to have to take them out of that crusty Tupperware box from under your bed or in your cupboard, and actually wash them. Most of us have experienced the struggle of cleaning our rooms after an extremely long year, but here are some tips that might help you make that burden a little easier in the future.
So the first and most obvious tip would be to wash your dishes as soon as you use them, but this is something we all tell ourselves that we are going to do every time we tackle the task of cleaning our plates and cups, so the next best thing would probably be to cover your plate with cling wrap before you eat, so that it is a quick task to take the wrap off of the plate and throw it away.
Another way to make things easier for you is to spring clean your room at certain intervals throughout the year, but when I say spring clean, I mean actually clean out things that you don't need. No you don't need that poster that you stole from Bourbons that one night out, or those millions of empty shampoo bottles, or every little piece of ribbon you've ever gotten and kept because you thought you might reuse it one day, throw the unnecessary things out and keep all the sentimental things in a cute box so that they can remind you of all the good times later. This will help you a great deal when having to move out at the end of the year.
Nobody likes to do dishes, especially when they have been sitting there for weeks, so sometimes it can be a struggle to find utensils to eat with. This is where your creativity comes in! Tin foil works well when shaped into a bowl and pretty much, anything can be used as a plate when desperate enough. Plastic envelopes, exam pads (although you will have to throw this one away when finished with it), lids of Tupperware containers work amazingly, and even if you still have none of these, looks like holding it in your hands is the go to. Spoons for cutting cheese work pretty well, although the cheese doesn't look so attractive afterward, rulers can be used as spoons as well, but this technique does not work so well when it's thin liquid that you're trying to scoop up. Spoons, knives and forks from the voorhuis can be lifesavers, so make sure to not break them the first time you eat with them. A mug can be reused almost a billion times if you're clever enough, rinsing it is quick and easy so do this immediately and then you can go from coffee to water, to juice to pretty much any liquid substance you can think of. (It also works well for cereal in the mornings... Or night.... Or pretty much anytime of the day).
If you can incorporate these few tips into your everyday hostel life it's going to feel like a breeze, but if at the end of the year life still got in the way and you've ended up with millions of dirty dishes again, my advice to you would be... Just throw it all away and buy some paper plates and polystyrene cups. Nobody can deny the amount of time it will save and it is the ultimate option for the lazy, yet efficient Karliener. Having to clean out your room will never have to be the same again.
-Nemo