As I walked out of the air-conditioned building, I was relieved at the low relative humidity level at this time of the day in Abu Dhabi, almost 11.00 pm. I always wear a humidity meter (is there a name for this gauge?!), my spectacles. Walking out of a cold building and suddenly going blind due to condensation on glasses signify a high relative humidity. (Ok, that’s how I measure it)

At this same time of the day, as I walked out, I felt freshly oven-baked air cutting through me. It was hot, it had to be, afterall it’s summer and it always get hot here. Walking to the car which was parked atleast a kilometer away (or so it felt like) due to the parking congestion in this city, I knew something was wrong with the weather. There was something extra in it today. So what? Finally, I found my car, which roared immediately on the turn of key.

And then I saw it. My fear of something extra proved to be right. The highly precise digital thermometer showed it immediately. This is what it showed:

At 11:17 pm, the thermometer showed 44 degrees Centigrade. It was a hot golden moment, the newspapers covered this the next day. Few people fainted due to dehydration, it said.

This is the true desert heat, and it seems to be getting higher each year. I can’t take it anymore. I’m going to KARACHI!