NEWCOMO

MAY 2014

I have just come back from deepest spain where the temp is 27 degrees to Italy... and everyone seems despite the new increases in temp here in italy TO AROUND 25-26 DEGREES seem to be wearing jumpers, coats and even on a real high humidity day, I see no difference...

I am drinking a litre of water if not more daily and yet these people seem to be running around with cardigans, coats and warm clothing.... my wife is Italian and even she feels the hit from returning from Spain.

What is going on !

ononno

Ne'er cast a clout till May is out! even in deepest S.Italy :-)
bye bye dicette l'inglese

primularossa

May be we Italians have a different adaptation to cold and warm temperatures. I can stand hot temperatures in July without air conditioning, while I suffer the cold very much. When I was in Scotland, years ago, I could not understand how was it possible that people went out with a just a thin jacket on, while I was freezing. Here I look at the people from the north, who cannot stand the temperatures that we have in May, and I figure out what do they feel in July.....

about the title of the post: are you referring to an article about the "cervicale" written by a British journalist in Italy some year ago?

BRIAN 1

hi,here in the deep south it can be 25deg anytime of year,i remember in march we were sunbathing in our cosys in back garden when a bunch of locals in their arctic gear walked past our neighbours gate,stopped and peered in like the bisto kids,cheers brian.

Pinco Pallino

The rudest I have ever knowingly (and deliberately) been to a complete stranger was some 18 years ago in Liguria: My son was in his pushchair, and it was about 22ºC in the shade; and – horror of all horrors – he wasn't wearing socks!! A passer-by stopped, and stood and stared at my son, and then had the audacity to berate me: "That child should be wearing socks" she scolded! This got my goat 'big time', and I replied: "Madam – when I require your advice I should ask for it; but until such time I should ask you respectfully to keep such unsolicited comments to yourself." … And then added "… And besides, where I come from no-one ever died of a 'colpo d'aria'!" 'Maleducatissimo' I do realize; but it felt jolly cathartic at the time – and I'm proud to say that my son has grown up to be a strapping young man despite sometimes having gone 'scalzo' as a toddler on the occasional glorious spring day!

nicktonight

Italy is further east than Spain and spring seems to come slightly later. I have often found that in April temperatures even in Sicily may be very close or lower than those in France or even the UK. It is hot in the sun but as soon as the sun goes you can feel cold. This spring has been quite cool here for instance. Then there is the fact that you change altitude a lot. The other day it was about 21 in Siracuse and we went up to eat in Palazzolo (800 m) where the temperature fell to about 10 and with the humidity we all felt frozen.

modicasa

Ah Nick, we're in Africa - the Sahara is 40 degrees in teh daytime and below freezing at night.... but having said that spring is very late this year, though seems finally to have arrived.

ononno

Ciao newcomo, forgot to add that drinking a litre and a half of water a day is very bad for you. It will rust your innards in no time.
bye bye dicette l'inglese.

K in Modena

Ah yes, I got that all the time with my daughter, born in August. They'd reel me in with "oh what a beautiful baby" then add, "but isn't she cold?" No she's not cold, it's August and 35 degrees!

HADENOUGHPIZZA

This reminds me of my mother in law , horrified by the fact that her new grand daughter wasn't wearing a vest .. in august .. it was 40 degrees in parma and humid with it . She kept buying me socks for her too ....

linseed oil

water is just for the spalla ive been told many a time , i think an italian could last without water as long as a camel in the desert they never seem to drink it

Isakat

Yep, I had the same. A nice old lady told me in the park that DD needed a blanket over her, in full spring sunshine.
Having said that, both DD and DS have inherited their father's gene. No socks all winter on cold marble floors and thin short sleeve school shirts all winter.
They both said the long sleeves were bothering them, so I had to cut them off.
I need my jumper in winter and coat, although not to the extend of wearing a duvet( Italian padded coats).

Pinco Pallino

Yep – I hold my hands up to having double standards: I'm the first to criticize the 'Parioli Ladies' who put their 'naftalina' impregnated fur coats back in their 'guardaroba quattro stagioni' according to the calendar and not the average daytime temperature – whilst sniggering at the lasses wearing next to nothing on a night out in Whitley Bay when it's 2ºC, stottin' wi' rain – blowing a gale off the North Sea with a wind chill factor of -11ºC!

highlander1

Character building

Lorna at Vicenza

I've been poorly (bloody kids bringing home gastric flu), but having a quiet five minutes and chuckling to myself. I've heard it all, no socks, no hat, no scarf, winter coat not padded enough, marble cold floors, dirty plant pots, no gloves, c'è aria oggi Signora, close the windows, air conditioning kills (I don't even have it), eggs are bad, give minestrina instead. The Whole Works.

Sounds bloody ironic now, but my kids are hardly ever sick. I checked their school absence books and they've missed a few days this year and the year is nearly over.