While this country may have endured the coldest July for 50 years, the many

people such as myself who tried to escape to warmer climes did not all enjoy the wonderful experiences they anticipated.

My holiday to Egypt was booked in the depths of winter when warmth and sun was something to look forward to. The holiday brochures promised an average temperature of between 35 and 40C.

As we bathed in the heat at Luxor airport, thinking how lucky we were to escape the UK's cold summer, we didn't realise we were walking in to a heatwave.

Every day the temperature crashed through the 50C barrier, eventually reaching 58C.

On the first day we started dropping like flies. The less robust would drift out of the party to find shade, gulp water and scuttle back to the air conditioned coach as fast as the heat would allow.

By day four, the local doctor was called out to deal with several cases of heatstroke, myself included. We had done all the right things, including keeping our skin covered, drinking plentiful water and wearing hats, but our bodies could simply not cope with the dramatic temperature difference.

Despite it all, Egypt was a wonderful holiday. However, I was very glad to get back

to England's freezing cold summer.

-Stuart Bower, Hawkhurst Road, Brighton