Mediterranean Climate Says What?

Moving from an area where winter temperatures drop below zero to an area where the lowest temp averages around 10 degrees C, I figured that the winter would be a breeze as I would not have to wear as much clothes or have to be decked out in winter’s thickest wooly warmers.  I never actually gave any thought to the whole Mediterranean climate and how that will actually affect me.   How do I prepare?  What do I wear?  And what should I be looking out for in terms of getting sick because of the areas natural weather conditions? 

What a Mediterranean climate really means is that the rainy months happen in winter as apposed to the summer rainfall I was use to back up on the Highveld.  Now I figured a little rain in winter would be pleasant instead of the face cracking dryness that no amount of moisturizer can combat but once I was living the little bit of winter rain it all proved to be far more troubling than just a case of a little bit of water.  There is also the unexpected and ever dangerous wind and teaming it up with the fact that it rains just about anytime, I was heading for an ear infection.  It was made worse by the fact that I kept thinking I was hit by the flu and the past few days was a bunch of self-medicating for the wrong prognosis which ultimately did absolutely nothing except numb out the fact that I was slowly going deaf.

Eventually I was deaf with only the ringing in my ears.  So I climbed in a cab and went to the hospital for help.  Something was wrong and I thought maybe I was having a reaction to the medication I was taking on my own accord.   

Here’s to the great staff at Cape Town’s 24 hour Emergency Medi Clinic for doing such an amazing job at helping me deal with the pain through the night and then fighting the infection.

But now I have been in bed trying to get my hearing back to optimum efficiency and at the same time I have quit smoking.  Looks like asthma has also snuck up on me so I have had to replace my little cancer sticks with a pump that allows my little girl chest to open up and take a breath.

So what is the lesson?

Keep warm and dry.

Stop smoking.

Stay out of the wind.

Go to a doctor the second you feel sick.