Hot. But more humid than hot. If I had to summarize the July weather in Melaque that would be it. It was what I expected. And it was what I got.
But it was not a surprise. Every book I have read concerning the summer weather on the Mexico Pacific coast warns of both the heat and humidity -- both so high that even the locals avoid being outside in the afternoon.
But let me confess. Almost every expatriate I have met in person or on a message board, lists the weather as one of their top three reasons for moving to Mexico. I am not one of those people. The weather is not a factor in my move.
At most the weather could be a reason not to move to Mexico. My idea of a perfect day is 55 degrees with an overcast sky and a slight drizzle. That is only a slight exaggeration. For summers, it is hard to beat Oregon where the temperatures are usually in the 70s with relatively low humidity.
I am not going to find that type of weather in coastal Mexico. One of the main reasons I chose this test run last week was to determine if I could acclimate to the summer weather in Melaque. I never expected to like the weather.
And the weather did give me a good test. During the day, the temperatures stayed around 88 degrees. When the breeze blew off the ocean, it was not unpleasant -- to sit and enjoy the breeze. However, the temperature in my bedroom did not drop below 82 the full week. Without the luxury of fans overhead, I doubt I would have slept. I went through half of my shirts on my first day in town -- soaking them through.
I never did get an opportunity to get into the local cycle of the day. Most locals arose early in the day to get their chores completed before the sun got too hot. And that was just about the time I was getting off of the bed. Almost everything I experienced was during the heat of the day.
The other weather issue was the thunderstorms. We had several while I was there. And each one was a wonder to behold. I have never seen lightning strike the ocean. I can now say that I have -- and I was impressed. On my second night in Melaque, we had rain so heavy that I was positive that the town would flood. Looking at the bedroom slider, I felt as if I was living under a cataract. The streets had plenty of very large pools of standing water, but business went on as usual the next day. Locals informed me that the storm was relatively mild.
So, how did Melaque do on the weather test? The threshold was low, but I do believe that I can learn to acclimate to the summer weather. I will just need to follow the same basic rules as the locals. The bottom line: weather will not stop me from starting my move to Mexico in Melaque.
But what about that beach? Is it the paradise that it appears to be? A great topic for the next post.
But it was not a surprise. Every book I have read concerning the summer weather on the Mexico Pacific coast warns of both the heat and humidity -- both so high that even the locals avoid being outside in the afternoon.
But let me confess. Almost every expatriate I have met in person or on a message board, lists the weather as one of their top three reasons for moving to Mexico. I am not one of those people. The weather is not a factor in my move.
At most the weather could be a reason not to move to Mexico. My idea of a perfect day is 55 degrees with an overcast sky and a slight drizzle. That is only a slight exaggeration. For summers, it is hard to beat Oregon where the temperatures are usually in the 70s with relatively low humidity.
I am not going to find that type of weather in coastal Mexico. One of the main reasons I chose this test run last week was to determine if I could acclimate to the summer weather in Melaque. I never expected to like the weather.
And the weather did give me a good test. During the day, the temperatures stayed around 88 degrees. When the breeze blew off the ocean, it was not unpleasant -- to sit and enjoy the breeze. However, the temperature in my bedroom did not drop below 82 the full week. Without the luxury of fans overhead, I doubt I would have slept. I went through half of my shirts on my first day in town -- soaking them through.
I never did get an opportunity to get into the local cycle of the day. Most locals arose early in the day to get their chores completed before the sun got too hot. And that was just about the time I was getting off of the bed. Almost everything I experienced was during the heat of the day.
The other weather issue was the thunderstorms. We had several while I was there. And each one was a wonder to behold. I have never seen lightning strike the ocean. I can now say that I have -- and I was impressed. On my second night in Melaque, we had rain so heavy that I was positive that the town would flood. Looking at the bedroom slider, I felt as if I was living under a cataract. The streets had plenty of very large pools of standing water, but business went on as usual the next day. Locals informed me that the storm was relatively mild.
So, how did Melaque do on the weather test? The threshold was low, but I do believe that I can learn to acclimate to the summer weather. I will just need to follow the same basic rules as the locals. The bottom line: weather will not stop me from starting my move to Mexico in Melaque.
But what about that beach? Is it the paradise that it appears to be? A great topic for the next post.
