I love mu sweaters, actually more than I used to in the UK, and I definitely wear them more. This may seem strange as I now live in a much hotter climate, but it’s all down to how we chose to keep warm in Winter. In the UK like virtually everyone we had central heating and, although I wasn’t into turning the thermostat up to sunbathing temperatures like some of my neighbours, we could comfortably sit in our apartment with maybe just a light sweater or extra long-sleeved T to keep warm in January.

Here in Almerimar, Spain things are different. Yes at lunchtime on a sunny day you will see tourists in very few clothes and maybe even sunbathing, but we local Brits and the Spanish prefer to get out our winter wardrobes, complete with jean, boots and yes sweaters! AND at night as we only have individual heaters I may be found wearing, shock-horror, a thermal vest under my sweater, which I only wore in the UK in winter to play golf!

Last year we installed some big air-con / heater units in our living room and bedroom, but even now we only use them when we actually sit down at night to chill-out. During the day as I am a bit of a fidget I just rely on my YES sweaters, AND whilst last year on cold days the windows would be firmly shut, now you will find even the roof door open in our apartment … WHY? we now have 2 cats, and naturally they like to wander in and out.

All this means that my neighbours here have to wrap up warm if they come for coffee, or a meal, which is actually very funny as I used to have a similar problem with a friend in the UK who barely heated her house in Winter, and now I would probably prefer her temperatures to the ‘hothouses’ I go back to when I visit the UK in Winter.

I recently bought myself a little economy heater to take the chill off my study in the daytime, but actually find I hardly ever use it and when I leave in on for several hours I feel flushed, get a headache, and feel an urgent need to open a window.

SO this is all leading up to introducing an article that I read a few weeks ago: the writer doesn’t like to switch his heating on until Xmas Eve … in the UK! This is because he firmly believes it is healthier not too, and the best way to avoid the winter onset of national sniffling, sneezing and general malaise. Whilst his family can watch their own breath:

“Everyone else has runny eyes and crackling voices. Everyone else is coughing. Everyone else has dry, tickly throats. We may be cold but we haven’t got a cold. Ask any doctor and he will tell you that the day the central heating goes on is the day their waiting rooms are awash with shivering patients.

The sudden change in the atmosphere dries out the air and the body responds accordingly. Vasomotor rhinitis is the medical term for it, the process by which certain chemicals are released to cope with the new temperature. This gets the blood vessels pumping, which inevitably leads to more blood going to the nose. Then comes the uncomfortable itch in the nostrils, followed by sneezing.”

SO whilst one friend, who came over for supper last night, complained about the cold (I did close the roof and put some heat on for her!), what she didn’t realise was that I was actually doing her a favour.

Basically what is wrong with needing to wear sweaters? It would be rather boring if we ended up wearing summer clothes all year round, as a friend in Florida pointed out to me years ago when I was walking round there in little shorts in February. Now as an expat in a hot country, I understand.

So that’s it; sweaters are great at this time of year and much healthier than turning up the heating, in fact they are so much better that for health reasons I have just bought some lovely new ones on the Internet from the UK!

To check out the article I mentioned please click below:

Too hot for your own good

About Almerimar

Almerimar is located in the region of Andalucia, Spain. The nearest airport is 30km away in Almeria. Other airports that are within 3 hours include Malaga, Murcia, Granada, and Alicanti. Other holiday resorts in the region include Mojacar , Aguadulce and Roquetas de Mar

Almerimar is also one of the largest marinas in Spain with over 2,000 births and excellent boatyard facilities.