Extremes

Hey Everyone,

You'd think that coming from Winnipeg, a city which has a range of temperature from -45 degrees to plus 30 degrees, would give me some sort of climatization advantage, right? WRONG. Lately the weather here has been around 30 something degrees, and sunny. Perfect summer weather, right? WRONG AGAIN. After being here a week, it isn't the heat that has been bothering me but the humidity. Who else has experienced 75-86% humidity? It's ridiculous! Regardless of how hot or humid it is outside, I find myself lugging around a sweater in my purse. Why you might ask? Because the moment you find yourself walking into an air conditioned building, whether it be a restaurant, a shopping centre or even the side shops opened to the outside, the air condition is blaring. One has to wonder sometimes why shops even bother opening their store fronts if their air-conditioning is being used to cool the outside of their store too, not that I mind when does get that hot, which it will.

The other day, I went to Ladies Street market. It was extremely hot and extremely humid. I found myself ducking into the side shops because of their air conditioning, and the shopping of course. I was there for a couple of hours. I went with Aunt P, and we stopped in a few restaurants as well, to take a break and rehydrate with "cool tea". After sweltering in the heat we went to Central, and visited the main library, similar to the Millennium, in that it is the largest.

Unlike the Millennium though, this library had 12 stories, each one designated to a different section, each containing a media area on that floor. Apparently, when it becomes hotter in July and August, it is very common to see more people enjoying the A/C and taking a nap.

Afterwards, we headed over to Aunt P's place for dinner. I was looking forward to eating seafood linguine, but sadly I couldn't stomach anything. The constant change of temperatures really did a number on me. I had the biggest headache I'd had in a while. It was worser than the migraines you get from hunching over your drafting board due to sore muscles. I wouldn't like to say I'm a wimp when it comes to pain, but wow. I'm not sure whether it was because I did not drink enough fluids during the day, the heat and humidity, the stress of adjusting, or all the above but I was nauseous. I couldn't even drink the ginger tea offered to me to settle my stomach, and I love ginger tea! I'm especially thankful to Cousin N for taking me home afterwards. Taking the bus back would not have been fun.

After a good night of rest, Tylenol and lots of water, I'm much better! So no need to worry! I've learned my lesson: bring water, drink lots of fluids and don't stay outside during the hottest hours of the day.