08 August 2013

And in weather news.....it's a scorcher

Okay, so it looks like maybe this entire year will be the year of only weather-related posts.  Seriously, the weather is just so bizarre.  First we had that cold, wet, snowy winter.  Followed by a very cold, wet and grey spring.  And now, it seems to be the summer of outrageous temperatures.

Last summer we had a drought and yes, it was dry, dry, dry.  But this summer, along with a drought, we've got hot temperatures.  Like 42C hot (that's 107F).  It has been over 39C for about 2 weeks now (maybe longer, can't tell, my wrist watch melted).  And it doesn't get much cooler at night, so it feels like being in an over.  There's been this light dry wind blowing too, so it is like being in a convection oven.  Humidity is down around 30%.  Like the desert or something.

When it is this hot, there's not much to do but sit still and eat lots of fresh, cold, juicy watermelon.  And that's all I've been doing.

And an update on getting into the EU.  Well, the tv commercials promised no borders and no border stops and free movement across borders.  But at the last minute, lots of political stuff happened, and to make a convoluted story short, there are still border checks going into and out of Croatia.  If you are an EU citizen, or a Croatian citizen, then you can go into the EU lineup, and just show them your ID card or passport and they'll wave you right through.  HOWEVER if you are not from an EU country (um, like Canada) then you've got to go into the non-EU lineup (which is always longer) and they need to scrutinize and stamp your passport going out of Croatia and getting back in.

So not exactly free movement across borders.  Yet.  Apparently in 2015 the borders will come down and things will be faster and smoother.  The shopping across borders is seamless and free-moving though.  So we are allowed to shop till we drop all day long.  But funny thing, now that there are no shopping restrictions, it somehow took the specialness out of buying something over-the-border.

And now, back to more watermelon.  Can't get enough of the stuff.  Yum.