A winter’s tale in BAires

Winter has taken it’s time to fully show its face this year in Buenos Aires. We’ve been waiting for the winds from La Pampa to blow a chill across the city. Compared with last year, 2014, primavera seems to have gone on and on and on… Not that I’m complaining but I’m intrigued to know how winter fares in the southern hemisphere. Finally, the mist is beginning to settle, just maybe.

A misty morning in BA

I’m often asked how cold it gets in BA and if it snows. July, the equivalent of January in the UK, is probably the coldest month in BA. I only experienced a few days of it, but it has got to down to about 6 degrees in the morning, rising up to about 11 or 12 degrees during the day.

It’s strange how 11 degrees can feel really warm in the UK (during winter I mean) but feels really cold in BA. I’m pleased to report we have proper heating in our house; it's so good that the radiator has burnt the wall in the lounge. And it has been known to snow, though very rarely. It last snowed in BA in 2007, and the last time before that in 1918! 

I had packed barely any winter clothes when we had first arrived in BA. It was the height of summer; who wants to think about thermal vests or long-sleeved tops when it’s 30 degrees outside? “You won’t possibly need any warm clothes, not until May at the earliest,” said my husband Alistair.

Luckily, he was correct. I was worried that I would be pining for my Uggs in no time. April was unusually warm in BA. Even May, which is often an unpredictable month in terms of weather, was pretty glorious. Only once did I need to wear a base layer while out running. I've also been amazed at how little it has rained, as well as seeing bouts of thunder and lightening in winter.

Now the air is slightly fresher in BA, I thought it would be a good time to escape to warmer climes and get some winter sun… To the UK of all places. And my Uggs are coming back with me. Just in case.