The good news these days in Windhoek is that it appears to be getting warmer. In fact, we haven't used the space heater in our bedroom for almost 2 weeks, now. Spring is on the way!
During late July and early August, we definitely had some cold nights. Houses in Windhoek do not have central heating, and ours doesn't have a fireplace (some do). So, when it gets down in the high 30's or low 40's (F) at night, the house is pretty cold. Then, during the day, the house (made of cement) stays nice and cold. That works well in the summer, but it is a bad trait for a house in winter.
People planning trips to Namibia during the winter months (late May, June, July, August) should bring wool socks, sweaters, and slippers for those cold tile floors.
I thought some of you might be interested in a rainfall comparison between Nebraska and Namibia. Namibia actually has different types of seasons than Nebraska--it's not just opposite timing. There is dry summer, wet summer, and dry winter. Our skin has been cracking recently with the lack of humidity and cold temps that keep air moisture low. We haven't seen rain (or even clouds, really) since sometime in May. As the graph suggests, it will be a couple more months until real rain arrives.
I made this graph a few months ago to show colleagues at Polytechnic how Nebraska's rainfall compared to Namibia. For those unfamiliar with Nebraska geography, Chadron is out west with rainfall of about 250mm per year. Lincoln is in the east part of the state, with rainfall about 750mm per year. Windhoek gets 300-400mm per year (and all of that in about 3.5 months), and Namibia also has a gradient of rainfall--very similar to Nebraska in fact.
The Powell family is welcoming the sun as it starts making its daily rounds a bit closer to the south pole. Bring it on!
No comments:
Post a Comment