Obsession with vests, socks, any kind of cool air, air conditioning

I mean, they live in a hot country, so of course they are used to hot weather and not used to cold weather?

If I go in my Indian colleague’s office (as in recent migrant from India, not British Asian), she has the heat on like a sauna and is still wearing a jumper. Totally unbearable for British people, too cold for her.

Same where I am in Portugal, they are obsessed with not having the air con on too much as they will get coughs/allergies etc. I remember taking my Dd out for a walk in the pram a week or so after she was born and my neighbour was horrified I was taking her out in the first 3 months, it was July, she was covered up and just a little walk around

It's a cultural difference, I get it too with dh's relatives, used to drive me mad when the kids were little!

I have AC in my home. It's set to 26/27, and I only turn it on when it hits 33ish.

Any cooler and I shiver. I use it to keep the humidity down at night, basically.

I think the Italians prefer not to experience a big difference between the cool indoors and the hotter outdoors. There may well be health benefits to keeping the daily range of temperatures and humidity small.

It all depends on your tolerance level: I'm Scottish, so to me 18 degrees is bikini weather.

I'm in France ATM and it's around 26 degrees - this morning, I saw a young woman at the train station wearing an anorak, which blew my mind.

I have Swedish friends who scoff when I turn the heating on when it hits 12 degrees and I can no longer feel my fingers. They laugh at my puny description of cold.

Similarly, I lived in Singapore for a while and have mates who think that anything under 26 degrees is cruel and unusual.

I got so unwell from aircon, ruins my holidays. I get really bad sinuses every single time

It would be very interesting to see the demographic and geographic breakdown of that research.

Not according to me. According to sleep scientists. I wouldn’t suggest that those who sleep in warmer rooms get no sleep at all, just that at a macro level, 16-19 is optimal. And coincidentally, my preference coincides with the research.

@twilighteaser although of course getting wet/cold/hot while doing sport is fine, especially if it’s a proper Italian sport with stylish clothes, like skiing or cycling. Of course you can’t have a cold drink afterwards though as you will die.

I live in Italy, it's currently 38 & I have my aircon set at 29. It's true that 22 feels cool to us after months of hot weather, especially now that we're in the peak of summer, I would need long sleeves & autumn wear in 22 these days tbh and if it's 18 outside I'd have my heating on to make it feel like 22! I never used to be like this, I've just got used to the climate here.

Italians are very afraid of cold air, it'll give you all sorts of problems and no you cannot go with wet hair & getting wet in rain, that may kill you! I went out with semi wet hair today ( for a cappucio after 11am but that's another story!) and I felt like such a rebel and was a bit worried about the stares, but no one noticed.

@waterbottlessCovid is doing the rounds in Italy, we've all just had it, sore throat, fever etc.

Oh, and wearing wellies 'will make you ill'

🧐

When my DD was born, my MIL brought a 'chester' with her (they're from Asia)
Like a square of fabric, made of wool

Fuck me

She'd lose her fucking mind if DD wasn't wearing it 24/7

Bearing in mind that DD was born in July

And where they're from, it often drops well into double digit minus in winter

Let's just say that she NEVER wore it

I hope none of you have forgotten the old advice about never sitting on a cold wall or step because it will give you piles! 😂 Just thought I would remind you.

My dh was told by his doctor years ago to wear a vest when hot to soak up the sweat.

Then maybe separate accommodation is the best option for you.

Half the world would be suffering from chronic sleep deprivation if mildly warm bedrooms were a real issue, but I don’t think they are.

I don’t agree. Sleeping is sleeping. We don’t freeze our bedrooms in winter to acclimatise to it being cold outside so why have it absurdly hot if you have means to achieve otherwise?

It's interesting how many people on the Olympic Opening Ceremony thread last night were saying that the athletes would get ill from being out in the rain

I was an au pair in Greece one summer as a student. I was looking after a primary aged child and you can imagine the temperature, the child had a baby sibling and every time we went into a home or office everyone shouted to turn off the AC because the baby would DIE with it on.

You don't get sick from walking barefoot ffs. Perhaps they're just acclimatised to the heat. My ds is 4 and would be a sweaty beast if we put a vest or cardigan on him in that kind of heat. I think he's going to need to a lot of deodorant when he's older though! I'd also prefer air con on high as I'm a sweaty person

@Everanewbie That ideal bedroom temperature is based on the UK climate, it isn’t appropriate in warmer climates. In some places I have stayed it isn’t possible to set the aircon below 25.

If it’s 40 outside, dropping to 25 is more than enough of a temperature drop to promote good sleep.

I like a cool room, especially after being in the heat all day. All the advice I've read about sleeping temperatures suggest 16-20 degrees, as per this one I just googled https://bedadvice.co.uk/beds-and-beyond/bedroom-temperature/#:~:text=An%20ideal%20bedroom%20temperature%20is,it%20difficult%20to%20drop%20off.

I shared a holiday with relatives once where the outside temperature was touching 40. As soon as I turned the villa thermo below 25 it was all "I'm freezing!! Look, I'm turning blue!" and they'd whack it up 5 degrees. If we go again I'll be insisting on separate rooms/villas.

I guess its conditioning. What you're used to and your composition too. But I always say, its easier to warm oneself up that it is to cool oneself down, err on the colder side!

My Mum would love it there -she is obsessed with "getting a chill ",recoils in horror if I walk on my wooden floor in bare feet ,or dare to open a window .
Was an absolute nitemare ,trying to deal with the menopause when she was visiting !!

My Portuguese partner used to freak at me taking a bath after dinner. Everyone knew someone who knew someone who knew some old lady in the village found dead in the bath after dinner. Maybe the clue there was "old".

Then his half German daughter said one night, after I was getting scolded for saying I was going to shower, that at home with her mum, she showered after dinner all the time. He nearly fainted.

I always ask him how much water after dinner is the crisis level....feet in a bowl of water? Hands in the sink? Walking the dog in the rain...?

Oooh, I just thought of another one: Kreislaufkollaps - it is a complete collapse of the circulatory system which, interestingly, doesn't result in rapid brain death, but does result in having to take several days off work. It only affect Germans and Austrians.