Surviving the Winter with humor

At this moment, the whole state of Rio Grande do Sul is complaining about cold. Take a look at a photo that was taken by Ronaldo Mendes near Santa Maria this morning:

Yes, Porto Alegre gets cold, very very cold.

I come from the north of the planet. I witness temperatures like -35 degrees almost every single year. That’s why people are so surprised when I tell them that the winter in Porto Alegre is the coldest I’ve ever experienced. 

But it’s true.. The houses are as cold as the streets (2.2 degrees this morning). And it is so unbelievably cold that I spend full weekends in the sleeping bag, under a pile of blankets and curse the day I decided to stay for yet another winter.

In Estonia the houses, buses, cars, schools, and supermarkets are heated. This is not the case here (except for some supermarkets and a few offices).

In 2011, our co-blogger Virgina posted (click on the link) the questions: "But why is POA like this? Why are buildings so ill-equipped to deal with colder weather? It’s not as if this scenario were new. Presumably winters have always been chilly in southern Brazil.Are the engineers hoping for some kind of genuinely warmer global future?" Believe me, I have the same questions!

Let’s take a look at the positive side – this has taught me some funny lessons:

• Even though there is no snow here, you still need separate pairs of shoes for the winter – 2 numbers bigger to fit 5 layers of socks.
• I’ve learned to make horse noises, due to the fact that it’s “prrrrrrrrrrrrrrr so cold” to leave the shower.
• Sometimes it makes sense to wear a full ski-suit underneath the pajamas.

You have to have an excellent sense of humor and a whole load of positive thinking to survive the winter in Porto Alegre (Or in Rio Grande do Sul). These are some of those things that make the Gaúchos so particularly special!

A chill in the air

Baby it’s cold outside. Um, actually, it’s cold inside as well. And apparently it’s not just me who thinks so—everywhere I go, inside every shop, office, government building, I see people wearing their coats while they work. Where is the heat?!

Where is the fantastically-efficient gas central heating? The weather-smart insulation? Where are the cozy fireplaces? Where are the winter-warm shopping malls, buses, restaurants?

We live in an old building, and our apartment is pretty small, so it’s easy to keep it at a reasonable temperature. And we are still able to use an old-fashioned gas bottle heater, which, though bulky, is a cheap way to heat a room.

Best of all, when you run out of gas at 8pm, a simple phone call brings adelivery within 30 minutes! You gotta love that kind of service.

In many newer buildings, these gas bottle systems are forbidden, so occupiers must rely on alternative methods. Split air conditioners are becoming more common, but these can be expensive to run, and annoying to sit under, as the heat bears down on you like dragon’s breath. More often than not, I see the ‘splits’ silent and dormant on the wall. And that great apartment with the panoramic view? When winter comes, those glass windows are like sheets of ice.

But why is POA like this? Why are buildings so ill-equipped to deal with colder weather? It’s not as if this scenario were new. Presumably winters have always been chilly in southern Brazil. Regardless, most new constructions I’ve seen are no better set up—worse in many cases—than the older buildings. Are the engineers hoping for some kind of genuinely warmer global future?

As for me, at this point I’m just hoping for an early spring.