I thought I could handle the heat in Malta. Then I spent a heatwave in Paris

In Malta, we’re used to the temperatures the French have endured over the past week.

But after experiencing a heatwave in Paris, I can confidently say I would much rather experience it in Malta.

The urban heat, combined with the lack of accessible places to swim and cool down, made it unbearable - worse than most Maltese heatwaves. My experience in Paris this week is second only to July 2023 in Malta, when temperatures climbed above 40°C and triggered mass power outages.

I have spent the majority of this week inside my first-floor apartment, with my curtains drawn, sitting in front of my fan, taking frequent cold showers and waiting for temperatures to drop.

The heat in Paris feels stagnant, as it sits between buildings, rises from the concrete, and lingers long after the sun has gone down. Because of this, I have struggled to sleep, usually only managing to get a bit of shut-eye at around 2am, when temperatures drop slightly.

The flat felt like an oven

Many buildings were also designed to retain heat, not withstand it. Add poor insulation and limited ventilation - problems also found in many newer Maltese homes - and you have a space where it becomes impossible to find any respite.

I know someone much worse off than me, living on the top floor of a Parisian attic apartment, who has described their flat as an oven. They have opted to leave the city for the time being.

Malta is also heavily urbanised and suffers from similar problems, but at least because it is an island, the heat often feels like it has somewhere to go.

But probably the biggest challenge has been trying to cool down. In Malta, we have the privilege of being able to jump into the sea or turn on the AC; here, neither is really an option.

If you want to swim in Paris, your options are limited. You can go to a pool - many of which opened for free during the heatwave - or join the crowds at the 100-metre swimming zone in Canal Saint-Martin. I tried both, and while they were welcome, especially the canal, neither comes close to the sea or the ease with which you can access it.

Paris also did not seem ready for such an early heatwave. Most of the other swimming zones planned for other canals and the Seine are only set to open on July 4.

Arguments in shops over fans and AC units

The main thing I had to adjust to was how rare air conditioners are. I quickly discovered that many places, including some supermarkets, do not have air conditioning installed.

In Malta, you almost take it for granted that a building will be equipped with an air-conditioner, but here, it is like finding gold. What struck me even more is that even fans can be difficult to find sometimes. And if there is a fan, it is usually a desktop or standing fan, not a ceiling one.

Over the past week, I have seen countless Parisians carrying fans and portable air conditioners in the streets on their way home. It has also been common to see the streets littered with their empty boxes.

On one occasion, while shopping at a budget general goods store called Action, I saw people hounding workers each time they came out from the warehouse with more fans and portable air conditioners.

The worst is the metro. They are not all equipped with air conditioners, and I happen to live next to Line 13, which is one of the unlucky ones.

Everyone is trapped in this metal chamber like sweaty sardines, huffing and puffing behind hand fans and portable battery fans, impatiently waiting for their stop and silently praying nobody else squeezes into the carriage.

France’s air conditioning dilemma

Questions concerning the installation of air conditioners in France have become the topic of a political clash, as the country heads to a presidential election next year. The far-right Rassemblement National (RN) has produced a large-scale air-conditioning plan, while the radical left La France Insoumise is opposed to this, arguing it will only make things worse by increasing temperatures.

While in Malta nobody questions the logic of installing air conditioning despite its poor environmental impact, in France, the technology continues to have a poor reputation.

A survey carried out by Ipsos and published in June found that 78 per cent of respondents said air conditioners are not environmentally friendly, and only 22 per cent said they had installed air conditioning at home.

Rather than embracing air conditioning outright, Paris is pursuing an inventive solution. Under a plan developed in the 1990s, the city is expanding a network of underground pipes that carry cold water from the Seine through buildings, reducing temperatures. By 2042, the system is expected to reach every arrondissement, with estimates suggesting it could stop at least 2.1 million people from buying individual air-conditioning units.

But as news of heatwave-related deaths makes headlines - including four toddlers - and news of another heatwave expected to hit France at the end of July emerges, the necessity to cool down might outweigh environmental concerns.

Marc Galdes is a former Times of Malta journalist who now lives in Paris.