It's not just Brits who moan about the weather

After almost dying of heatstroke on Monday when I went to the British Embassy (which, as I may have mentioned, turned out to be unnecessary) and then getting lost on the way back, it's a surprise to discover that Egyptians think it's really hot too. And it is really, really really hot. Although thankfully it isn't particulary humid in Cairo, there's no getting away from the fact that it's 42 degrees. 

As a Brit, moaning about the weather is a national hobby. So much so that when I was studying my Teaching Business English course, I had to do a lesson plan for some imaginary Japanese businessmen that included small talk. Obviously, the first topic of acceptable small talk was the weather. I always thought that this was because Britain is an island in northern Europe, and as a result the weather can plummet 10 degrees in the space of 24 hours (or less), with bright sunshine one minute and lashing rain the next. In other words, there are many changes to the weather to discuss in detail; many comparisons to be made with last week, last year and when we were children; and many predictions to be made about what the weather will be like in five minutes, tomorrow and at any time in the future.  

It transpires though that weather can be discussed at length even when the conversation goes something like this:

"It's so hot". 
"Yes. I think it's hotter than yesterday". 
"Apparently it's still going to be hot tomorrow". 
"Really? I was hoping it wouldn't be so hot".
"No, the weather forecast said several more days like this".
"Oh. Still hot then".

I'm really not joking. When, to me, there is no discernible difference between one day and the next, I can only conclude that it's human nature to moan about the weather. I'm strangely pleased about this. It makes me feel less like an outsider. Ahram Online, the Egyptian English language news website, even commented that "Egypt usually witnesses hot weather during this period of the year". You don't say. To be fair, they do go on to say that it is apparently hotter than normal. To a Scottish redhead though, there's not much difference between 42 degrees and 45 degrees. It's just ******* hot. Still - life as an expat is full of new experiences. I had the first intentional cold shower of my entire life after my pointless (have I said that before?) trip to the British Embassy.