Rotisserie Joules

As some of you already know, I'm currently in a temp apartment in Singapore - and the air-conditioning has broken. Joy.

For those who haven't been here, Singapore is just North of the equator and it's tropical - a year-round 30 degrees, with about 80% relative humidity. In short: it's very hot and very sticky, every day.

Living in South East Asia has revised my previous views on air-conditioning. While I pootled in cold, rainy Britain, I viewed aircon users with ecological indignation. Now I'm in Asia I see it as a necessity, and probably a key factor aiding SE Asia in becoming globally competitive. Fans don't work - they merely waft around the hot air. And when it's this hot and humid, everyone becomes sleepy and it's almost impossible to work (quickly). With aircon, however - your mind and body awaken in a spry temperate state. And so until a better alternative emerges, I'm with with aircon.

But now I am suddenly without it, I have found myself sleepless, climbing walls (sweatily), and falling back on old European instincts - such as hurtling to open windows when it is too hot indoors. In Europe of course, this lets in colder air and a breeze. In SE Asia, it just lets in a thick, suffocating wall of more heat!

Perhaps surprisingly, the human body does adapt to a change in climate after a while. I remember when my Asian father visited England for short stays, he was perplexingly wrapped in a jumper even in summer. I was born and bred in Northern Europe, and while I almost failed to cope with the 24/7 dripping sweat, frizzy hair and all-over shine during my first six months in Singapore - that feeling that you need to shower every 5 minutes to be clean - I can now tolerate it like most locals. Even for outdoor sports. And in fact, like Dad, I've even had to reach for a cardi on days when it has dipped to a shocking 25 degrees!(25 is a heat wave in the UK!)

But tolerance is one thing; and the climate here is still not comfortable. My apartment is currently like a rotisserie, and me a choice cut of meat smouldering in it! To sleep and work smartly, you definitely need aircon.

PS if any of you are visiting Notting Hill in London (and it is still there) the Rotisserie Jules does very nice spit-roast chicken! http://www.standard.co.uk/goingout/restaurants/rotisserie-jules-7431305.html

Biscuits and some issues with US & UK English

OK, we all know the classic British English / US English clangers: 

Pants UK = elasticated underwear 
Pants US = trousers
Rubber UK = eraser you have in your pencil-case at school
Rubber US = condom
Pissed UK = drunk
Pissed US = angry (in UK we say 'pissed off' for this)

But there's more. I have a friend from Chicago and we recently went out here in Singapore. No Chinese dialects to contend with, second language grapplings that me and my Asian friends have.. and yet we had conversations like this:

She: I went to IKEA and I bought this comforter.. 
Me: What's a comforter?
She: You know, like a padded blanket thing you have for the bed
Me: Oh, you mean a duvet !
She: What's a duvet? 

Also (in Chicago at least) you can go tailgating as a student. In the UK this means you're possibly creeping along, illegally following someone's car. To my friend it meant taking vehicles, crates of beer and getting drunk in the car-park before watching a big football / baseball game.

And I also discovered that Americans have biscuits. We all know that they call real biscuits 'cookies'. But biscuits exist too.. and they're not 'biscuits' but basically crumbly, savoury scones, which you have with gravy! I joined her and her friends at a US restaurant, and I tried one. Here it is! (Underneath the bacon)