The heat goes on . . .

Prepare for sweltering heat next week, as temperatures in Europe could break all-time records . . .

The main topic of conversation, here in Salzburg, seems to be the weather. You either love it or hate it, depending on what you plan to do with your day. For those of us who have time to go to one of the beautiful lakes, in the Salzkammergut, the soaring temperatures are a treat. But you have to be there rather early to save yourself a place in the shade under one of the huge oak trees. Last Tuesday, I went to Fuschlsee and arrived around midday. The public bathing beach was almost full and all I could see were hundreds of beach towels, laid out next to each other, as sunbathers reserved places for themselves and their families. By the afternoon it was packed with people trying to escape the 34 degrees in the city. Fortunately, the horses that take tourists around the city were given a few days off – due to the heat.

I think that Fuschlsee is so popular because the crystal clear water is only 24 degrees, compared to Wallersee which is 30 degrees at the moment and feels like you are swimming in a bath tub. Looking around at the families enjoying themselves, I can see children swimming or splashing each other in the water or enjoying the swimming pool with its whirlpool and slide. There are families in electric boats or adults wearing wet-suits to swim to the other side of the lake. However, the latest craze this year seems to be the stand-up boards. In front of me there are many young people trying to keep their balance on stand-up boards and they make it look much easier than it really is. I notice, with amazement, that hardly anyone is sunburnt even though they are exposing their bodies to the extreme sunrays all day. If you go to any beach where British holidaymakers are sunbathing, you will see that the majority of them look like red lobsters – even though they keep slapping on the factor 50 suncream. I also noticed that hardly any of the children are wearing caps to protect their heads and there are even very tiny babies, sitting at the edge of the lake, with no protection – won’t they get sunstroke?

Yes, it is hot and many Austrians are speaking about record-breaking temperatures as the meteorologists predict more hot weather for next week. Obviously, we have forgotten about the summer of 2013, when we had weeks of scorching weather here in Austria. Every day temperatures rose to well over 30 degrees and a competition began as to which town could boast the highest temperatures. In the end, Bad Deutsch Altenburg, in Lower Austria, broke the all-time record with 40.5 degrees. It felt more like Africa than Austria.

We are definitely not alone when it comes to scorching temperatures as even England heads for its second heatwave this summer. They can expect temperatures of 33 degrees in Cornwall and Devon this weekend. The government has already introduced a hosepipe ban in many areas due to a 58-day drought, when it didn’t rain once. This means that anyone who is caught using their hosepipe to water the garden or wash the car will be fined for doing so. Neighbours are snitching on each other as there is a shortage of drinking water and reservoirs are running dry.

As for the rest of Europe – the heat is unbearable with terrible consequences. Near to Athens there was the deadliest wildfire since 1900, which killed 96 people, and Portugal is struggling with forest wildfires. Many of these fires were started deliberately as arsonists tried to burn down the forests to get planning permission to build hotels and apartments. The heat goes on, but it does have its disadvantages.