A Cold Spell

For a long time, I've talked about the temperature in Mumbai - Hot, REALLY Hot or Not So Hot. Well, this past week, it's been chilly. The temperatures at night get down into the upper 50's and by day, it's only in the mid-70's. While compared to what the temperature is like where most of you readers are it's not that cold, for Mumbai, it's record setting. One day this week, it was the coldest it's been in almost 50 years. And what's more, most people here don't have any means of keeping warm. Anwar said the other morning that, "Never have I worn or owned a jacket." He said it with pride. That night, he gladly accepted a gift of Diego's old parka/ski jacket. (Anwar now rides his motorcycle 30 minutes to and from our house - and finds it quite cold.) I find myself wearing socks around the apartment and a sweater in the mornings and evenings. This picture shows me in my sweater and Luis in his fleece vest on Friday (he pulled is socks off almost immediately after I put them on).

It stayed chilly all day. So that night, I pulled out Luis's fleece PJs for him. Since the buildings don't have any insulation (the walls are concrete & brick), the windows aren't even remotely close to air-tight and the window A/C units gust in cold air, it is usually the same temperature inside at night as it is outside.

Most people around here are bemoaning the cold weather. "It's too much cold," they say. I feel fortunate that I have sweaters and warm blankets and what not to keep warm. And, knowing that the temperatures will be 110 and higher in a couple of months, I can't help but SAVOR each and every cool day we have.