Born Free

I was in Corfu in the heatwave of 1987 which killed quite a few, mostly elderly and the very young as is usually the case.

Temperatures were in the middle 40's everyday and one day reached a staggering 50c. Nobody was outside that day. That evening it was still hot enough for your stilleto heels to sink into the road.

I phoned my father and he was climbing the walls with worry, it was my first time abroad, I had very fair skin and he was picking up the paper and reading front page headlines of all the deaths.

I assured him I was alright and being very sensible and surprisingly for a 20 year old I was despite having no experience of such alien temperatures before then.

It completely ruined my holiday, the heat was unbearable, I couldn't sunbathe in it so understandably my mate and I made the most of cooler night temperatures ie clubbing sigh now I remember my handsome Greek boyfriend on holiday from the mainland t'was a heavenly two weeks

Anyway reading about this Indian heatwave it brought it all back and I feel so sorry for the people.

I was able to relax all day, I had money to buy much needed liquids which were not a luxury but a necessity, in stark contrast to India's average man and woman who still have to work, especially hard if they are farming. They haven't always got the money to buy water and they certainly can't relax all day. 1500 dead because of it. It sucks.

Sure makes me appreciate our cooler climate.