Six Tips on How to Survive the London Heatwave

London has been baking in a  heatwave for weeks now, so I thought I'd share my tips on how to survive the sweltering temperatures both above the ground and in the Tube, which, it was reported this week, had temperatures of over 40C...

1. Wear comfortable clothes. Loose fitting linen or cotton is best. My favourites are Marimekko, Hobbs, Jaeger and Cos, who all make wonderful clothes which are easy to wear, but still smart enough for the office. Needless to say, I always wear flat shoes when commuting and change into something more formal at the office (although not always!) In a heatwave my 'go to' shoes are Birkenstocks or my silver K Jacques St Tropez sandals. But don't forget that pedicure; there's nothing worse than chipped nail polish or hairy tootsies...
2. Don't rush and run. I'm usually the commuter with least patience; on the street I overtake anyone ( and I mean anyone) with a pull-long suitcase and run up and down escalators on the tube. But in this heatwave, I've become the one who amblers along the tunnels, and on the bus lets everyone else go out first. (I know I should do this all the time, but...)
3. Carry a bottle of water. Even London Transport now make announcements about this, because the conditions on the Tube can be dangerous. This week The Standard (The London evening paper, free at most tube stations) reported that the temperature on the Central Line exceeded the legal limit for keeping cattle. 
4. Another way to cool down is a little fan. I carry a Spanish one which Son and Daughter-in-law gave out to the wedding guests in May. It's been invaluable when the train has suddenly stopped and the heat inside the Tube carriage has become unbearable. Plus all those around you benefit too!
5. Find a park. There's always one around the corner in London. You may have to fight for a spot during lunchtimes, but for the rest of the day, there's usually plenty of room (and some shade) for everyone. Failing that, find a terrace with a view. There's a pretty good list here.
6. Always carry an umbrella. It's London after all, so you never know when the heavens will open, plus it'll double up as a good shade when there's none provided by the venue...

   

   With Son at Alexandra Palace beer festival last weekend.
   My Marimekko Sumie dress was perfect wear for the hot day.
   As was the umbrella...Boy, it was hot!

    

Fireworks Are Not For Dogs

Our old terrier hates this time of the year (I know because he's told me). All it takes is a single firework going off and he becomes a shivering wreck, looking at me with his big puppy dog eyes, whimpering and asking for me to make the noise stop. 

Of course I can't. 

Over the years we've tried everything to calm him down; cuddles, having the radio on, talking to him in a calm voice. But none of it helps. Sometimes he  even looses the control of his bladder (which makes the cuddling interesting). The trouble is, where we are in North London the fireworks season can go on from pretty much now until January. Sometimes I wonder how people can afford to blow money up like this, but I digress.

The situation is worse when we are out at night and the terrier has to cope on his own. On our return we quite often find a wet patch on the carpet, but worse is the thought of the terror our little dog has had to endure on his own.

This year, when I saw we're going to have the return of the Alexandra Palace fireworks, which is very close to us, I decided to look for something that I could give the terrier to calm down. A dog Calpol if you like. British parents will know this children's medicine as a miracle worker: it takes away pain and makes your children into charming little angels (ok, not quite).

But instead of a medicine, I found a plug-in diffuser called Adaptil with a smell that only dogs can sense, and which emulates the scent of their mothers. You can plug in this device whenever you think you might need your dog to be calm. And ladies and gentlemen it works!

We've only had the occasional nasty pang or two so far, but judging by what an amazing effect this thing has on our (still at the age of ten!) hyperactive terrier, I'm hopeful that the Guy Fawkes and New Year's celebrations won' t be as dramatic as they usually are for our little 'stinky'.