The cooking smells from the kitchen enter my apartment.
FU-mi — two syllables; 'u' is the rounded back vowel; the word is short and clear.
Use this when cooking smells from a neighbour's kitchen (especially strong spices or frequent frying) enter your apartment through shared ventilation systems. This is a common problem in Italian apartment buildings with centralised exhaust shafts.
Fumi di cucina (cooking smells/smoke) entering neighbouring apartments is caused by the shared ventilation shafts (canne fumarie) typical in Italian apartment buildings. The problem is particularly acute in older buildings where individual apartment ventilation connects to a shared vertical shaft. Kitchen extractor fans that vent into this shared shaft can push smells into other apartments.
La canna fumaria è condominiale e fa passare i fumi.
The flue is shared and lets smells through.
Technical explanation of the cause; canna fumaria is the shared flue/chimney shaft.
L'estrattore della cucina non sfoga correttamente.
The kitchen extractor is not venting properly.
Possible technical fault; a blocked or malfunctioning extractor worsens the problem.
Possiamo chiedere all'amministratore di ispezionare la canna?
Can we ask the administrator to have the flue inspected?
Constructive proposal; the shared flue is the administrator's responsibility.
Italian cuisine is one of the world's most aromatic — garlic, onions, olive oil, and herbs create intense cooking smells. In a country where home cooking is a daily cultural practice, the line between 'wonderful smell of Italian food' and 'intrusive cooking odours' can be subjective. Italian courts have addressed this in multiple rulings, generally requiring that kitchen ventilation meet technical standards rather than imposing dietary restrictions on neighbours.