It's Getting Hot in Here!!!
The time has come to address the topic that is close to the heart of every Canadian. The weather, of course.
First of all, before I opened my India travel guide a few months ago, the idea that winter/spring/summer/fall are not "universal seasons" never crossed my mind. Sure, I knew that +15C could be summer in some places and winter in others and that winter could mean drought, rain, or snow depending on where you are... but somehow I always assumed that everyone out there knows what exactly spring is and which season it follows. So I was quite surprised when a friend from tropical country asked me about the names of all seasons and about which one of them comes after winter. One of those eye-opening experiences...
So India has 3 major seasons: winter, summer, and monsoon. Winter (November to February) is considered to be the most pleasant time of the year in most parts of the country (a.k.a. the best time to visit India), with temperature going to as low as 15-20C, while Indian summers (April to June) are generally very hot (up to 45C). Monsoons that follow cool things down and provide some relief to all living things that are about to evaporate.
My stay so far covered the end of the Hyderabadi winter and two thirds of the Indian summer, and here’s my subjective assessment of the local weather. If I had to choose one word to describe it, that word would be – you guessed it! - HOT. One word, however, would not do justice to the variety of feelings and emotions that different types of hot weather can evoke... So here’s a more detailed description.
* Mild hot (28-33 C): Combined with a cool breeze, makes for the most comfortable living environment for a human being (in my opinion, of course), as strikes the perfect balance between need for clothing (minimal) and sweating (also minimal) :) Can sleep at night.
* Medium hot (34-39 C): Can’t sleep without keeping the fan on at night (that is, if you don't have AC/water cooler). You discover that you can in fact drink 3 litres of water and not need to go to the bathroom at all, as that you drink will immediately come out through your skin (it's amazing, I’m telling you!). The above is known as "the more you drink, the more you sweat" principle.
* REALLY hot (40+ C). Everyone adopts the very Canadian habit of religiously checking the weather forecast and starting any conversation with a discussion of the weather outside. Heat rash. Sweat stains. Feeling dehydrated in the morning. Breaking a sweat within 1 minute of taking a shower. Yiiikes. Have in mind that this description is coming from someone who spends a good chunk of the day in an AC'd office… I wonder what people who work outside would have to say about it.
Patiently awaiting the monsoon season,
Zhenia
P.S. By the way, it’s salwar kameez, not salwar kamiz (see the heading below). My mistake.
P.P.S. Mumbai IS the largest city in India. My mistake again, thanks Anoop.
First of all, before I opened my India travel guide a few months ago, the idea that winter/spring/summer/fall are not "universal seasons" never crossed my mind. Sure, I knew that +15C could be summer in some places and winter in others and that winter could mean drought, rain, or snow depending on where you are... but somehow I always assumed that everyone out there knows what exactly spring is and which season it follows. So I was quite surprised when a friend from tropical country asked me about the names of all seasons and about which one of them comes after winter. One of those eye-opening experiences...
So India has 3 major seasons: winter, summer, and monsoon. Winter (November to February) is considered to be the most pleasant time of the year in most parts of the country (a.k.a. the best time to visit India), with temperature going to as low as 15-20C, while Indian summers (April to June) are generally very hot (up to 45C). Monsoons that follow cool things down and provide some relief to all living things that are about to evaporate.
My stay so far covered the end of the Hyderabadi winter and two thirds of the Indian summer, and here’s my subjective assessment of the local weather. If I had to choose one word to describe it, that word would be – you guessed it! - HOT. One word, however, would not do justice to the variety of feelings and emotions that different types of hot weather can evoke... So here’s a more detailed description.
* Mild hot (28-33 C): Combined with a cool breeze, makes for the most comfortable living environment for a human being (in my opinion, of course), as strikes the perfect balance between need for clothing (minimal) and sweating (also minimal) :) Can sleep at night.
* Medium hot (34-39 C): Can’t sleep without keeping the fan on at night (that is, if you don't have AC/water cooler). You discover that you can in fact drink 3 litres of water and not need to go to the bathroom at all, as that you drink will immediately come out through your skin (it's amazing, I’m telling you!). The above is known as "the more you drink, the more you sweat" principle.
* REALLY hot (40+ C). Everyone adopts the very Canadian habit of religiously checking the weather forecast and starting any conversation with a discussion of the weather outside. Heat rash. Sweat stains. Feeling dehydrated in the morning. Breaking a sweat within 1 minute of taking a shower. Yiiikes. Have in mind that this description is coming from someone who spends a good chunk of the day in an AC'd office… I wonder what people who work outside would have to say about it.
Patiently awaiting the monsoon season,
Zhenia
P.S. By the way, it’s salwar kameez, not salwar kamiz (see the heading below). My mistake.
P.P.S. Mumbai IS the largest city in India. My mistake again, thanks Anoop.
12 Comments:
Lol the joke goes, there are only two seasons in South India. Hot and very hot.
And my bad for the cuisine stuff. :)
I am not sure if you like mexican, but Tex Mex in Jubilee Hills is "decent".... okay..passable.
And continental? I am hunting for some myself, though many restaurants like Tabla, Harahs etc have started serving continental, they can improve. But be a Roman in Rome, try North Indian cuisine in Angeethi. Its really good.
Keep in mind the humidity factor if you are still in Bombay. A 35C temp in Bombay combined with its humidity is probably equivalent to 45C in non-humid conditions. Its hotter in South India, as Anoop rightly said, hot and hotter are the two main seasons. In some places like Delhi, the temp is around 45C, in the month of May. I have seen a temp of 49C in the north Indian city of Gwalior!
Tip: consume a LOT of (packaged) water NO matter what.
PS: my trip to Hampi got cancelled :( btw, check out my new post
hey! wow, sounds like your on one amazing journey. Im just on my comp doing a project on india, and i was tryin to find info about the climate, and then i found ur entry! It really helped actually lol! Hope u have a great trip
- love from Canada
Wow 28-33 C is only 'mild hot'. I can't imagine what 40 C must feel like.
long time no update :)
Zhenia - your so right: Weather is such a classic canadian topic of discussion! I'm in Beijing right now and completely agree with your assessments of mild hot, medium hot and HOT.
Well, you are certainly going for extremes Zhenia, eh?
:)
zhenia,
it's great to be home! send me your picture link so I can look at them. will post pictures soon.
tn.
hey! nice post.. ill be reading.
greetings from aiesec maracaibo, venezuela, im almost an alumni.
Hi Zhenia!
Soon i will be a Satyam trainee like You. Can you tell me your experience about the company and the training. What's your future prospects at Satyam as a trainee? (coder, project manager, leader ...) Would you recommend Satyam or not?
Please write other Satyam trainee blog addreses too.
e-mail: horvath.marton(a)freemail.hu
Thank You!
Marci
Hey Zhenia!
I just moved to Hyderabad for 8 months...liking the city but SO different from home- clothes, food, TRAFFIC! Nice to be in touch with a fellow Canadian in this corner of the world- keep in touch :)
Zhenia, its about time you posted again. Consider this your kick in the a**
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