A Question of Weather
The summer of 2007 has been filled with weather news from countries in Eastern Europe, much of Italy, Greece and other places that have been experiencing record temperature highs while the dollar has hit a historic low.
Some readers have been sending emails questioning if this is the year they should chose to venture out of Paris and La Belle France. The answer is a always resounding yes. There are three definite reasons to visit these countries including their beauty and history, and some of them cost substantially less than the City of Light. Still, for our money, the City of Light is always the best destination, be it your first time or your tenth!
We always advocate travel in neighboring countries, as it broadens one’s education; but what a difference the weather makes. Bonjour Paris always warns people visiting Paris to never count on the weather. At the very least, it tends to be iffy and visitors may experience four seasons in one day. Paris winters can be blissful, albeit chilly. Summers may be blustering hot and make tourists want to hit any and all places that advertise air-conditioning. Then there’s the rain; April showers can and do happen each and every month of the year.
Since the August 2003 heat wave -- where scientists at Inserm (the National Institute of Health and Medical Research) determined that nearly 15,000 French people died -- the French have become serious about la clime, and la clime education, should there be another such occurrence. Hospital staffs have been instructed to be on duty if rip-roaring high temperatures overtake France. Groups will be mobilized to distribute water and watch out for the elderly or people who are vulnerable to dehydration.
Commercial establishments are ripping out their tiny over-worked units, and US style air-conditioning with ducting and vent blowing like all get-out are becoming an integral part of building specifications. Hotel owners recognize that if they want to attract an upscale clientele, they’d better offer air-conditioning for marketing and more reasons. In this sense, Paris is becoming more like the US, where you might freeze in a public place necessitating wearing a sweater. Thank goodness French thriftiness, coupled with the high cost of electricity, serves as a detriment to turning the AC on full-blast.
Some even install air-conditioning in their apartments for princely sums and are now wondering why. Not everyone has such a luxury or even the possibility since many apartments building boards would say absolutely no, because there’s nowhere to invisibly place the condensation units. Bets are on that this will change should or when there’s another heat wave from hell.
Robert Muir-Wood, a consultant with Risk Management Solutions in London, states that many areas of the UK have suffered the worst floods since 1947. He affirms that weather patterns are changing with increasingly dramatic effects. (As if people in Texas haven’t noticed, as they too are enduring some of the worse floods ever!)
Why? Because of global warming, or so some people say. Happily, France has had an amazingly cool and wet summer this year. Bikers are whooshing down the streets. Now that the sun is shining, people are in substantially better moods.
But, wait a second, as I’m finishing this article and heading off to liberate a city bike, it’s started to rain! No one in Paris is going to have to worry about watering balcony flower boxes. It’s a real down-pore. But by the time I finish this article, the rain will have stopped and within a few minutes the sun will be shining. Then it’ll be first-come, first serve for people wanting to bike from here to there.
Velib' has been experiencing some start-up problems, but hey, I’ll be among the people you’ll see peddling. Just wish these very heavy bikes had better instructions and rear view mirrors.
Paris New Media, LLC Karen@BonjourParis.com
