Hot, Schmot. Take a trip to the South.

What do folks from the southeastern US think of the Korean heat? Ignoring the fact that schools are stingy on AC, how do you handle it?

Richmond, VA is about the same in terms of temperature with slightly less humidity. Looking at Atlanta, the humidity and temperature are both slightly higher. I'm also comparing this to my city Daegu, which everyone tells me is the hottest place in Korea.

This may be the only time I've felt advantaged to be from a southern state.

Georgia here. I've thought the exact same thing! All through May and June I kept thinking, "When is it going to get hot?" Sure, it sucks to not have the AC on, but in my opinion, both the actual temperature and humidity are WAY less offensive than a typical Georgia summer. Especially when you consider that summer is basically from late April to early October. Koreans and their heat. 

New Orleans here. 

Very few places on earth get humid like the NO.  I mean, you walk at a slow pace for one block and you are drenched in sweat.  That being said, everyone there is aware of the heat index and recognizes that we humans will be quite sluggish in that heat without AC.  I can't think of anywhere in the city or its surrounding area that even thinks of cutting back on AC.  Also the standards of dress are different.  It's acceptable and encouraged to wear sandals, dresses, skirts (of a longer length than here), and sleeveless tops. 

So yes, it's much hotter there, but the way they handle it is just more comfortable.

Oh, and everybody there sweats as much as me.  There's a sense of camaraderie that comes with sweating your ass off for three months straight.

As a native Floridian the heat/humidity is normal to me. It is the lack of A/C that is the problem.

Back home I go from AC cooled house, to AC cooled car, to AC cooled building (real ac not set at 28) with minimal time in the heat. Not so much here.

I hate going into a restaurant that has a fan on and nothing else and sweating while I eat. ( i usually will just leave and go elsewhere now) I liken being here with no air to the summer I laid sod to save money between college semesters.

Also, the winters back home are 100x better.

Texan. The heat here is mild, temperature wise, but the humidity is a bitch and a half. At least if you go into the shade in Texas you get a break. It was full dark out two nights ago and I started sweating just walking down the street.

I am from the North East.
HOWEVER, i consider myself quite adaptable.
I have spent time with my Floridian family, as well as staying in Korea and the Philippines.
Out of all (Southeast USA, Philippines, and South Korea), i feel South Korea is the worst.

For example, here, it is about 94* and 61% humid (SK).
Philippines, it is 103* and 74% humid.

Difference? temperature and humidity, Philippines is worse, but there is something about having WIND that cools someone off. Also, the Philippines is not *entirely* covered with Pavement and reflecting windows. 

South Korea feels like everywhere the heat will get you.  No wind to cool you. Pavement and asphalt everywhere, windows that reflect the sun directly at you. etc.

Georgia, here. I grew up in a house without air conditioning, so the lack doesn't bother me as long as I can turn on the fans, or open the windows.  On a normal day, I open the windows as soon as I get to school so that I can feel the breeze, I also keep the lights off for as long possible.  I also turn on the fans sometimes (none of my co-teachers care because they are hot too). I have also started wearing tank tops to school. Once again, no one really cares what I wear. Overall I would agree that Georgia summers are hotter and more oppressive. 

North Carolina here, too. Right smack dab in the middle, and it is usually hot and humid with next to no wind. I still sweat and think it is hot here, but, then again everywhere you there is no a/c on. If it is on here, the temperature isn't all that cold. At least in NC everywhere you go in the summer has the air blowing cold as ice. 

Wow, ladies, I never thought about how standards of dress affect you in the summer.  Very sad, indeed.

I actually do hate the heat and humidity back home, so I like to think I'm just used to being miserable. I feel for all of you who are new to the humidity. I took a trip to Seattle last summer (when the weather was beautiful). Exiting the airport in Richmond was like walking into a brick wall of swamp ass.

I hope the people posting about how it's not too bad realise that this isn't as hot as it gets here...

I hope the people posting about how it's not too bad realise that this isn't as hot as it gets here...

It's pretty close. July is the second hottest month (on average one Fahrenheit degree less than August for Daegu) and the temperatures for the past two weeks are around (often above) the average highs in the climate data.

Besides, after hearing about how miserably hot it is here, I check the weather back home everyday. It's about the same. The hottest day (so far) was back home (at 99, I think Daegu's hottest was 91 or 92). It makes sense as both Korea and the South are subtropical regions.

Don't underestimate Southern heat...

That would be July 18.
Traditionally the "hottest day" of the year. The 'traditional dish' for this day is a chicken-ginseng soup.

I hope the people posting about how it's not too bad realise that this isn't as hot as it gets here...

Precisely. Wait till much later when it gets so hot that you sweat even as you shower. . .

I'm not from the south, but a friend of mine is, and he tolerates the summers in Korea much, much better than I do.

I'm from Florida. We have air conditioning there, and it's on from March to November. Makes a big difference.

Also a native Floridian. Air conditioning is a MUST and is in every house and store and restaurant. I remember in class I would actually get so cold that it would feel nice to walk outside (but for only a few minutes).
I think I turned my AC on in April, and yeah, it can stay on through November, though I remember many a Christmas being 80F and going to the beach.
All in all, heat and humidity is bearable with AC, and Korea should comply...

I hope the people posting about how it's not too bad realise that this isn't as hot as it gets here...

and this summer has actually been pretty mild so far, at least where i am, and at least compared to last year. last year i would be drenched in sweat at 7:30am standing at the bus stop, in the shade. and this was a mere 5 minutes after going outside. i'm not even a big guy and i don't even usually sweat that much.

A fellow teacher is from Arizona and he has complained about the heat already this summer.  I know this is Jeju Island, but really!

Alright, I'm not from the southern US, ( New Yorker ).   However can generally deal with hot weather much better than cold.   I mean yeah Korea is humid in the summer, but I look around and I'm not the only one sweating.   Although some Koreans seem to be wearing long sleeves, particularly women that are avoiding the suns' rays and not breaking a sweat.  That is weird. 

What I find a serious nuisance are all the flies though.  I hate eating or drinking and having to worry about them landing on me or my food or beverage, gross !

What makes the heat (and the cold) worse is how poorly insulated everything is here. Buildings, especially public buildings like schools and bus stations, are basically giant glass boxes full of aluminum poles. All the heat escapes in winter and it turns into a glasshouse in summer.

I hope the people posting about how it's not too bad realise that this isn't as hot as it gets here...

and this summer has actually been pretty mild so far, at least where i am, and at least compared to last year. last year i would be drenched in sweat at 7:30am standing at the bus stop, in the shade. and this was a mere 5 minutes after going outside. i'm not even a big guy and i don't even usually sweat that much.

Yeah this year has been really mild all year long. Winter basically ended in mid-February, by late March it was warm enough for the cherry blossoms to show up early, and it didn't really get warm until late June. Last year was a joke, it was still snowing in early April, and there was about one week of nice springlike weather in May before it got hot and nasty.