People frequently tell me how lucky I am to live in Paradise. And I agree – don’t get me wrong. Yet every paradise has a bit of purgatory in it. It is an unavoidable fact. Not EVERYTHING is perfect ALL the time.
It is early September and we are in “second summer” (my term). First summer is May to mid-July and is much like the summers that I experienced when I lived in the US. Sunny, breezy, temps in the 70’s and 80’s with an occasional excursion into the 90’s. In the evening the temp drops to the high 60’s or low 70’s, often with a cool north wind. It is perfect weather. Second summer is mid-July through early October. Sunny, hot evening winds from the south, temps in the 90’s and 100’s with an occasional excursion into the 110’s. In the evening the temp might get as low as the high 70’s but is frequently in the mid-80’s.
We have air conditioning mini-splits in our house. Problems arise in the summer because (1) we live in the middle of the city – beautiful, near the water, walkable to just about everything you could need, AND surrounded by built environment. There are few green spaces, including our “back yard” which is tiled to surround a lovely swimming pool.
Also (2) the houses here are made of concrete and cinder block, so they absorb and radiate the hot temps in the summer, and get cold in the winter. (Houses here do not have heat/furnaces) Typically, in the summer, we only use air conditioning in the living room during the day, and the bedroom at night. After sunset, we open up the windows and doors to let outside (hopefully cooler) air into the house.
To that end (and my current bit of purgatory), this morning when I walked into the living room at 6:40am the temperature was already 32°C (that is 90°F)! Today is forecast to be over 100°F, so the air conditioner is getting an early morning workout.
The problems of living in Paradise. 😉