Texas

I feel very sorry for the folks in Texas who are enduring a terrible heatwave at the moment.  It always gets hot down there, but this year it's been brutal.
Some years ago I had to go to Austin in the summer and it was hot there too.  When I finished my appointment, I went to the airport to catch a flight to Houston where I was to go directly back to Los Angeles.  My flight had been cancelled and there was none other that day that would connect.


Houston, Texas



I always carried a small atlas of the US with me on my travels and I looked at the distance between Austin and Houston - about 150 miles and I had 3 hours before the flight.  If I drove like a European, I could make it and still catch the plane; I rented a car.

I was making pretty good time and after about an hour I stopped at a small village.  It was very green and there were cattle grazing out in the fields.  I had of course, been cocooned in air-conditioned comfort, but when I opened the door all that stopped.  It was one of the hottest experiences I have ever had in my life.  It must have been at least 100 degrees, with almost 100% humidity.  I actually ran from the small shop where I'd bought a soda, and threw myself back in the car.  It's something I've never forgotten, although I always have fond memories of the lone star state.