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It’s the first half of the summer season. Of course it’s hot out there and many people are asking how long these temperatures are likely to last. Well first off, let’s remember the phrase “we’re all in this together”. You see, these hot summers are no longer just in the UAE and the Middle East. According to a friend in the UK, some parts of the UK are as hot there as it is over here. Imagine their discomfort compared to ours. We do swelter here when we’re outside but, to emphasise, that’s only when we’re actually outside and for many of us, other than outdoor workers, that’s not all the time. We can always get into an air-conditioned building or vehicle. Add to that, we sleep in air-conditioned rooms and we ride in air-conditioned cars.
But imagine living in the UK, right in the middle of the summer months. It’s true that the summers in England used to be like the winter months in the UAE. Not overly hot or cold, except for the frequent showers.
However, England did suffer from a massive heatwave back in 1976. I remember that summer well. Every outdoor event we went to we were handed plastic signs that could be pressed onto our windows at home. They were easily removable and read, ‘Don’t waste water’ with a drawing of a hand catching a water droplet. We were having water shortages so strict hosepipe bans were being implemented by every local council throughout the UK, with fines for disregarding them. It was a heatwave, the first of its kind. The temperatures had been the highest they’d ever been in the ‘70s. But guess what, those temperatures have now been beaten. The UK’s temperatures hit new highs this year and all previous records had been broken. I was astounded to hear that, on some days, temperatures had gone as high as the mid 40s, just like they are here.
Those who’ve never been to the UK might think, that’s nothing, we get higher than that here. But the UK’s way of life is the opposite of what we have here, in terms of indoor temperature controls. Just like we never need central heating in the UAE, because ours is predominantly a hot and humid climate, the UK doesn’t have central air-conditioning because it is, primarily, a cold climate. In contrast, it has central heating. When temperatures hit the high 30s and 40s, people in the UK had enormous trouble trying to keep themselves cool. Fans can only do so much to circulate the already hot air.
I remember that sleeping was a real problem. Not everyone had a fan so one slept without any bedcovers, which in itself was not conducive to sleeping, and lying down on a mattress feeling hot and sweaty all night made matters worse. In the winter we could warm up by adding more blankets, using a hot water bottle or turning up the central heating, but in the summer, even throwing off the bedcovers doesn’t help. We couldn’t wait for the morning so we could just get up. In fact, even sitting on a sofa was uncomfortable because of the sweating. I often wonder what’s happened to our global climate. The winter in the UAE was unreal this year. At one point, when it seemed the rains had subsided, I looked up at the skies and their colouring just looked a very British blue.
I, for one, miss the winters in the UK and the UAE. I like the idea of being able to go for a walk without feeling hot and bothered. In the UK walking in winter was a good way to warm up and to get your blood circulation going.
I once remarked to an AC technician here that it was easier to warm up than to cool down. If you’re cold you could wear more layers, sip a hot drink and snuggle up to a hot water bottle. But in the summer, ACs aside, no matter how many layers you take off, you’re not going to really cool down. He was amused and astounded because he’d never heard that thought process.
