The Heat is On

Okay. It is 1:00 in the afternoon, and it is 80 degrees in my apartment. I am not sure what the temperature is outside, but in the sun, probably 95ish. It is cooler in the shade, but not too much. The humidity is not too bad here, but bottom line, it is hot. When you are outside walking everywhere, and climbing 52 stairs to get into your 80 degree apartment, it gets warm! I cannot remember the last time it rained, and you can tell by the Arno, which seems to be drying up! Earlier in the year, there was talk of a drought. I haven’t heard it lately, but if there is not one, I cannot imagine why. Literally, I don’t think it has rained in over 8 weeks.

The evenings are still very nice. I have air conditioning in my apartment, but use it sparingly, as it is expensive, and that is not the way I want to spend my money. The heat is increasing my "vampire" tendencies. I go to school, 9-1, come home and have lunch, do homework, email, blog, etc., then sleep the afternoon away until the sun goes down.

Once the sun is down (well, not down, because in Florence there is daylight from 5 a.m. until 10 p.m.), but around 6:30, I hit the streets. First out, I go for a walk along the river. I usually stop somewhere for a glass of wine, and then off to one of the bridges to watch the sunset. The sunsets here are beautiful. People line the bridges to take photos, particularly of the Ponte Vecchio.

I like sitting on the bridges, because it is so entertaining. I can usually get some material for my Public Displays of Affection book, because people love to kiss on bridges at sunset. Also, people do many other crazy things while taking photos of their own. One bridge that I frequent regularly, Ponte Santa Trinita, has large pillars that jut from the side of the bridge. People are always crawling out to those to have picnics or drink wine. I would love to do it, but am afraid I wouldn’t be able to get back over on the right side of the bridge!

Everyone says that August is the worst for the heat. All of the Italians go to the beach then. I sure am glad I got my hair cut short, only because it dries faster! It stays wet most of the time. Enough whining. I took the liberty of looking at Weather.com for a little relativity. Today it is 95 degrees in Florence with humidity of 18% and feels like 93 degrees. In Nashville, on the other hand, it is supposed to be 93 degrees with 83% humidity.