I love living in Europe. The quality of life is just higher, especially in a wonderful city like Munich. We have great parks and forests, public transportation, museums, restaurants, etc. And it is bike friendly.  

Alas, the one thing Americans often miss is air conditioning, especially in the summer. Although summers here are drier than in Boston, it doesn’t matter how dry the air is if it’s boiling. Last summer we had temperatures well into the 90s (°F, or 35+ °C). So how do we cope?

We block out the sun. Rollladen remind me of hurricane storm shutters. But really they are just mean to block out the sun during the day. I live in a relatively new building (about 10 years old) and the insulation is top notch - great in the winter, but it is also shitty in the summer, when I forget to roll down the rollladen before going to work. Heat trapped in the apartment will stay, even through the night. 

Spring has arrived early in Munich and it’s another great weekend, about 65 (°F, or 20°C) right now. And I’ve already rolled out the rollladen.

Living Room: Luckily the sun is coming in mostly from an angle, so I can roll those down and leave the other windows open for sunlight.

Balcony: Intense sun. I sat outside reading for 30 min., before I thought sunstroke and came back inside.