Out of the frying fan, into the fridge

So this, chez Salut!, is the pièce de résistance.

Looks and is great, with plenty of space to relax, entertain and take in the striking city view. But we are about to discover how resistant our pièce is to the Abu Dhabi summer.

For weeks, people have been warning that the balcony, the feature that makes a tiny flat seem spacious (it was marketed as two-bedroomed, but is actually nothing of the sort), will soon be out of bounds.

Beneath the heat of the day, with temperatures edging upwards of 40 degrees, it is already difficult to stay out much longer than it takes to water Mme Salut's attempts to relocate the Royal Botanic Gardens somewhere east of Kew.

But at night, and especially during the early evening, it remains usable. And I suspect it will continue to be pleasant enough to sit out and eat an evening meal for a few more weeks to come, before it gets really hot and humid.

The last time I bought fans was during a heatwave in London in, I think, 2003. After a fortnight of sticky, oppressive nights - one colleague whose flat had access to the roof was using it to sleep on - I paid good money for the last two fans available in the nearest departmental store. I had just enough time to get them home before the weather changed completely, and they were barely used until they were exported to the south of France.

Here, I have drawn the line at those monsters you see in one or two shops, enormous fans that blast out a gale and blow a huge hole in the bank balance. But I have bought a couple of smaller ones again, confident this time that the only change in temperature and air quality will make them more, not less useful (provided I don't leave them out in the sun, where they will surely fry).

Seasoned expats around the world will know better, but my own guess is that the balcony will seem a welcome haven for another month or so, and may still be OK most evenings for a little while after that. And then we need only wait patiently for October, from when it should be bliss.

And in the meantime, there's that forthcoming sojourn in chillier climes. Even the Var may seem on the fresh side after here, but there are cooler places to visit first:

* London, where one friend says the weather has been splendid ever since Boris was elected (by way of balance, another friend threatened not to set foot in the capital again until he was thrown out of office)

* Middlesbrough, which I am sure will be Middlesbrough

* Gothenburg, where I will be too busy representing Abu Dhabi's new daily at an international newspaper conference to worry about how cold Scandinavia is in June.

Comments

[Dumdad]

Cool balcony - I'll be over for a barbecue in November....

[Gigi]

Yes - that is a great balcony. In fact, it looks bigger than my entire flat.

If it's 40° now, how hot is it going to be when it's really hot???

[Phil Randall]

See you next week in Middlesbrough, Colin. If you are ther on Friday evening perhaps we can find a curry house together?

[Bill Taylor]

Apropos of nothing but that it's Sunday, there's a fascinating cover-story in today's New York Times Magazine about blogs and blogging, written by a one-time professional blogger. Accessible at
www.nytimes.com/pages/magazine/

[amine]

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