One of my students called Wuhan “a stove”, another called it “an oven.” Wikipedia refers to it as “a furnace.” In any case, you get the idea--it's hot! Not just hot, but really really hot and muggy. . . ugh.
The first week here was awful. I didn't want to go out and explore the city not only because of the heat but also because of my constant sweating. Every time I went out, I made sure I had a couple of packs of Kleenex which I used to wipe the nonstop sweat on my forehead. As if the heat wasn't enough, the sky was gray,dull and with a constant haze.
Fortunately, there is air conditioning everywhere --at the hotel, in the classrooms, at the stores, in the taxis etc—kind of like the U.S. And just as in the States, there is a marked discrepancy between the outdoor and indoor temps. I have heard that Rome is suffering a heat spell. So, I should consider myself lucky to be in a furnace with a/c
Two nights ago, though, no a/c needed. There was a huge thunderstorm around 7:30. It was severe—trees were downed, roads flooded and the lights went out in the entire city of Wuhan. I was with some colleagues getting a foot massage (a future journal entry) and the lights went out for 2 minutes. We lucked out. Back on campus, however, 50,000 students were left without electricity for almost an hour. I am sorry for the students and the 9 million Wuhan dwellers BUT the upside is that the temperature lowered considerably. For two evenings it was a very pleasant (and unusual) 77 degrees.
But as the expression goes, all good things must come to an end. It is hotter than hell this morning at 9:00 a.m. The party is over --back to cranking the a/c.
PS I just checked weather.com It says the temp is 99 but it feels like 117 degrees. I swear it feels like 217 degrees!
