Two hot plates

I find myself in France - arguably the culinary destination of the world, saddled with two sorry looking electric hotplates. One of which never switches off.
My visions of creating gourmet delights, trying out new cuisines, finding inspiration from the French and trying different culinary techniques at home seem all but evaporating.
The technicians at the apartment have promised me (2 weeks ago) a brand new set of two hotplates. But for the time being, I have to be content with one hotplate that's the size of my smallest pan and the other one on which it's impossible to cook anything without burning it.
A good start. I figure, things can only get better!

Since there are not many options for eating out, we are trying to eat most of our meals at home, and even calling some of our newly made friends over for wine-evenings-that-slowly-morph-into-dinner parties. (Those are the best kind!)

With limited ingredients and a very handicapped kitchen, I still aspire to cook fresh, healthy and innovative food. A lot of it is inspired by Indian cuisine, given my background and watching my mom in the kitchen, but I try to mix it up by combining it with something I saw on television or read in someone else's recipe or just adding my own twist to it.