Living in a Block of Flats
Continuing on the subject of blocks of flats, these last few months, my husband and I lived with my father-in-law in his communist-era apartment block. Living there brought back so many memories of my experiences and the things I noticed when I first moved to Slovakia and lived in a panelák (I also lived in an apartment block in Bratislava but it was built in the 1920s and was not a panelák, thus, a different living experience). Here are some of my personal thoughts and memories, some good and some not so good:
The aroma of delicious foods: I always took the stairs up to my third floor flat and along the way, I was constantly assailed by the most wonderful smells of different foods being prepared, most particularly on the weekends. Once I became familiar with Slovak cuisine, I got pretty good at identifying what people on different floors were probably going to have for lunch. I could never verify anything of course, but I used to amuse myself thinking of what people’s reactions would be if I knocked on their doors and invited myself to dine with them.
Kids playing in the courtyard below: Blocks are often pretty cleverly arranged. Usually, several blocks are clustered in a “T” shape or in rows, close by with grassy areas that are shared, with swing sets and sometimes sandboxes for children to play. I used to look out my bedroom window and watch the children play year round. I always thought to myself that it was nice that parents could keep an eye on their children so close to home, with the many other neighboring children who also lived in these close by flats.
Good central heating: I forgot how wonderfully toasty warm a block flat can be. Radiators are located in every room. Sure, there are pipes running floor to ceiling through the whole block but they don’t stand out that much. I often had my washed laundry strewn over the radiators and connecting pipes. With the ability to regulate a high amount of heat, I could dry a pair of socks in little more than an hour. That’s fast!
Hearing your neighbor sneeze: Ok, I’ll admit it, walls can be thin in a panelák. In my father-in-law’s flat it’s possible to hear the upstairs neighbor sneeze. To be fair, however, this neighbor has one of those loud, dramatic sneezes that is beyond normal decibel intensity. It’s also possible to hear water being turned on and off, and if you are near the toilet, you can hear your neighbor above flushing too.
The fear of falling out the window: In every panelák flat I’ve been in, if you examine the construction of the windows, it looks like this: the base of the window starts at about waist hight and finishes at the ceiling, or just about. The window is a single pain that opens left or right, like opening a door (excluding reconstructed windows). When you open the window there is no screen and the only thing keeping you from potentially falling out is caution—that’s it. And people do occasionally fall to their death; particularly children. My first response to seeing these windows open was typically American: “Man, does this have the word “lawsuit” written all over it, or what?”
Constant construction work: If, for example, you live in a block with four flats on one floor and there are 8 floors, it’s pretty likely that sooner or later you are going to have to deal with noise of someone doing minor home maintenance requiring the use of a power tool, such as a drill. It’s also a likelihood that you will have to deal with a flat owner doing major reconstruction. Of course, the same issues exist in any kind of apartment block around the world. It has nothing to do with living in a panelák. I had never lived in one before and so noticed this annoyance only once I moved in.
The bottom line: When I moved to Slovakia and was completely on my own, I really appreciated the fact that I lived in a block of flats. I constantly felt surrounded by people, even if I didn’t know them and couldn’t communicate well with them. I enjoyed greeting people in the stairwells, watching kids dart to and from, and getting glimpses of their lives.
