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Ahh summer, the time when the sun shines, the terraces are full, and people take long vacations. It’s a wonderful time of year, except for that one annoying thing: no air conditioning. You walk into a shop or restaurant, and instead of being blasted with cold air, you walk into a sauna. How wonderful! If you’re from a country where most homes and businesses have air conditioning or simply hate the heat, you probably can’t stand this time of year.

Dutch people (and others in surrounding countries) love to say how there’s barely a summer, and it doesn’t get that hot. But statistics and weather graphs show otherwise. You can no longer deny that the days with very hot weather are increasing. People didn’t need air conditioning in the past because the summers weren’t that extreme. But times are changing. Even though many businesses and homes are investing in AC more and more, plenty are still without.

So here are a few ways to get through the summer here:

Close Everything in Your Home

If you don’t know this already, keep everything closed. Don’t open doors, windows, blinds, and such throughout the day. The sunlight brings a lot of heat with it. So if you keep everything closed, you can keep a lot of that heat out of your home. Then, when the weather cools down in the evening, open all windows and doors to cool off your home. This is what they call natural (and free lol) air conditioning. And if it doesn’t get too hot, this actually works.

Go Out at the Right Times

If you want to spend time outdoors, go out in the morning or evening. In the mid to late afternoon, the temperature will be the hottest. You can see the temperature by hour on sites such as Buienradar. This way you can go out when it’s not that hot outside. Don’t drive yourself crazy by not checking the temperature outside and going out when it’s the hottest outside. Try to plan your days around when the temperatures are the best.

Change Up the Way You Live

I’m the kind of person that loves to shop in store. Online shopping isn’t really my thing. But when it’s 30c outside, you’ll find me at home. If I have to buy something, I’ll try to buy it online first. If you want some relief from the heat, go to the grocery store. It’s always cold in there. Wear light-colored breathable clothing and wear layers. It can be quite chilly in the morning and evening but really hot in the middle of the day.

Consider Making an Investment

I resisted investing in air conditioning for several years. It’s expensive, very expensive. Funny enough, my Dutch partner was actually the one trying to convince me to agree to it. I kept saying, “oh it’s not that bad.” But at a certain point, enough is enough.

I work from home. So sometimes I would literally work with no clothing on and still be hot. My nights were horrible because of the heat. Now I sleep like a baby and can actually focus on my work. I know that AC is very expensive. But if you can afford it, consider finally getting it. It’ll transform your summers.

Just Wait It Out

If you’re like me and can’t stand the heat, then summer is your least favorite time of year. This is especially true in countries like the Netherlands, where you walk from one sauna into another. So in the summer, you’ll find me spending most of my time at home. I go out in the morning or evening if I have to. And most of the time, I’ll stay inside if it gets above 25c. I just try to remember that better days are coming.

Final Thoughts

I think it’s funny how so many people say that AC makes you sick. It’s such a European thing to say and complete nonsense in my opinion. I never got sick when living in the US because I turned on the AC. Yes, maybe people can turn on the AC to a more reasonable temperature in the USA, but it never made me sick. Everyone has got to do what is right for them at the end of the day. I love the cold. You may like the heat. That’s fine.

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The featured photo was taken by Valentina Brenters Photography.

How do you survive the summer?