Few topics of cultural exchange are more more humorous (and occasionally anger inducing) to me as an American with a disability than European heat waves. And Europe is in its worst heat wave apparently ever at the moment.
The persistent resistance of the French, Germans and British to installing air conditioning and updating their cities to manage climate change seems to wobble between old health superstitions and smug moral superiority. Eastern Europe and Southern Europe do not suffer from this issue.
The WSJ editorial board shared this information from France’s ecological transition agency. They are slowly being convinced that the death tolls and hospitalizations that heat waves produce may need mitigation.
The French ecological transition agency said in May guidance that AC may be necessary for the elderly, chronically ill or pregnant. But if you really can’t live without it, use it in only one room of your home, and don’t set the temperature below 79 degrees Fahrenheit. That’s because AC uses too much energy and contributes to climate change.
I prefer to sleep at 20C or 68F. This partially because my sleep & biometric tracking apps as well as my physician recommend a cold dark room to achieve the sleep required to keep my health stable. The 26C recommended by the French for us chronically ill types? It is 79 degrees Fahrenheit.
Yeahhhhh almost ten degrees warmer than my doctor recommends. No thanks you. Even at 72F if I’m down to my socks (always sleep with socks no really) and my underwear I’ll still find myself thrashing under just a top sheet. I once had my neighbors attempt to call the police on me for running air conditioning during a notorious heat wave in 2023 in Frankfurt. It was a noise complaint. Sure.
On my most recent European trip, I brought paper fans. Not electronic (though I did bring two of them as well) but the sort you languidly wave yourself with in an attempt to look cool when in a desultory mood. Which never seems to lift in this heat. It actually does look rather chic and the movement of the air helps.
I brought the pharmaceutical storage grade ice sheets used for shipping injections that have granulated particles that bond with ice to keep them cold longer.
I strap the ice inside a travel vest with dozens of pockets or wrap them around pressure points on my feet, ankles, wrist and neck with scarves when I’m particularly overheated. I’ve seen people do this with socks filled with rice and water kept in the freezer as well.
I have those goofy towels that absorb extra water and keep it cooler that I wear around my neck and head to go under the several wide brim hats I travel with. I always swear SPF 50. A sunburn is a nasty way to bring on heatstroke. I also bring my own ice trays to freeze ice cubes for both drinks & a bowl over which my hand fan blows for faux AC. I’ve dampened cotton sheets over open windows at night with a fan in to create evaporative cooling. It’s not AC but it helps. That’s why I carry two charger fans.
I will also chill wet wipes and my cosmetics. I carry small misting sprays with me everywhere (I like the classic Mario Badescu Rose). I have even mixed mint essential oil into my travel-size aloe antiseptic gel. My soup is peppermint as well to give that feeling of cool. And I always carry few rehydration sachets of electrolytes.
I’ve made friends with these techniques pretty regularly. Hydrating salts and a water bottle refill is a good conversation starter. Because as much as the French fear drafts for their health with artificial cold the Germans seem to think it’s a necessary part of life to suffer the heat (as if we don’t have enough heat in hell) everyone is suffering and needs help to get through this kind of extreme heat.
The only person who makes sweat dripping down his balls sound appealing is Lil’Jon in Get Low. And even he said at the Democratic National Convention that it’s time to get low..er temperatures. So to Europe I say get cool or you can have deez nutz. Let’s all get lower temperatures together.