Breaking all the records-still living dangerously

The week starts off hot and believe or not it just gets hotter! In France its called 'the canicule' and it is taken very seriously. The 2003 heatwave resulted in over 1000 deaths, many elderly and others who unfortunately died from drowning - swimming lessons are not high on the priority list in France.

It was over 40 degrees in the shade of our back yard for 5 days in a row. By day four when even the usual evening breeze was absent, we retreated inside for most of the day. The pool reached 32 degrees and provided brief respite, but the crunch walking across the dead grass and tripping across the hot tiles was hardly worth the effort. After dark - at 10.30pm- it was lovely to cool the body temperature right down before we climbed into bed with the fans on.

On the fifth day, we decided to retreat into our air conditioned car and head back to the surf coast on Ile D'Oleron. It was several degrees cooler there but still very little breeze, resulting in pretty average surf but the water was crystal clear, and the sea temperature a mere 22 degrees. We indulged in a dozen oysters at our favourite oyster farm but although they were chilled they warmed up quickly and lost the ' 5 star' rating of our previous visit. So we headed to our favorite beachside Cafe, L'Atypique, at La Bree Les Bains. Imagine Rogers surprise when he tried to order a burger and chips and they responded 'we're sorry but its too hot to turn la plancha on today', so we settled for croque monsieur, which we figured still required a griller to melt the cheese, or perhaps they just popped it on the metal table! for instant heat. A cooling aperol spritz and a dip in the calm mirror surface of the bay before we headed back to LPR. It was still 42 degrees in the shade.

The government had opted to close schools, and apart from the shoppers in the air conditioned supermarkets, most people stayed indoors. Those who had ventured out, seemed to think they would be cooler if they drove with their arms out the open car windows. We're talking about modern cars, that must surely have had air-conditioning. Go figure? And with no reprieve in sight, as the annual Fete du Musique party kicked off in Paris, the government declared that alcohol was banned for sale and consumption in public places across the city from 6pm - 7am. Only licensed venues could serve alcohol. There was no revolution, and quite possibly it was impossible to police with the large crowds expected, but their intent, apparently, was to reduce the number of hospital admissions through heat exhaustion and over consumption.

Thunderstorms rolled through on Saturday but the temperature remained high and we could count the large drops on our terasse. Finally on Sunday, the heavens opened and we had a solid downpour for a good couple of hours. Thankfully, the temperature dropped, not dramatically as it does in Australia, but enough to seek out a real tshirt rather than a singlet top. It was very very refreshing and provided a welcome relief for us all, including the parched lawn.

Emma Lou and Johnny arrived on Sunday evening after a 12 hour drive from the UK. There was the usual clean-up and preparation for their arrival, and we even set up the dinner table 'in the new kitchen' to visualise the end result. There was much excitement when they saw 'Les Palais des Bois' for the first time and realised the old wood shed was gone, and plenty of chatting about the new build, relaxing and of course, the heatwave.Læs mere