In the U.K., we are largely accustomed to the grey skies and rain that accompany living in North- Western Europe. There's that saying that we use, "There's no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothing/equipment." The poor weather is an endless source of small talk, but we largely manage to get on with our lives. Sports fixtures go ahead, unless there is a risk to life, festivals are known for their mud baths and you can never be sure of the weather, even for a summer wedding. Bank Holidays are famously wet, but we still make plans to go away and it does not stop our enjoyment.
For our late May Bank Holiday last week- something incredible happened. It was hot- record breakingly hot! The hottest late May Bank holiday since 1944 and actually many would say that it was too hot. The week before our heating's thermostat had kicked in most mornings and put the heating on. One of my children had shivered through a GCSE exam and gone back to wearing a jumper under the school blazer! So yes, it was a shock to see my car temperature gauge register 39 degrees celsius, and yes the car temperature gauge is always hotter than it is. All the same, it has NEVER reached the dizzy heights of 39 before. As a nation, we are poorly equipped for the heat. Our homes don't have air- conditioning and with an emphasis on thermal efficiency we've mastered the art of keeping the heat in our homes. The net result was that our nation slept poorly in the hot weather and many avoided the outdoors in peak times. Driving along the Bristol Downs in half- term in the middle of the day, I might have expected to see families out enjoying the open space, but no, the green expanse was deserted! We don't cope well with the heat and the nation's infrastructure grinds to a halt in the opposite extreme- snow! Many nations have snow throughout the winter and their airports, rail networks and schools manage to stay open. That does not happen in the U.K.
What we do well with in Britain is the grey and wet! Despite all our rain, we've not really mastered the art of catching and containing it as invariably summer hose pipe bans seem to follow wet winters. Another source of conversation and indignant outrage when the car can't be washed and the garden can't be watered.
In a beginner Italian lesson this week, we discussed the weather and at the end of the lesson, like every week, I made a quizlet for my student to practise their new vocabulary. I follow every language lesson up by emailing you your own bespoke quizlet so that you can recycle your newly acquired vocabulary. The more that you put into practising the new vocabulary, the more words enter your long term memory. I recommend quizlet as a great way to practise your new vocabulary.
Here's the link to Italian weather vocabulary:
https://quizlet.com/gb/1186101026/italian-weather-flash-cards/?i=709j46&x=1jqt
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