Deplaning at Charles de Gaulle and coming into the terminal was an immediate reminder of one of the big differences between Americans and Europeans: our relative perception of how much AC is enough. Americans like to hang out somewhere around 74 or so. Europeans don't cool public spaces much below 80. They actually accept the limits of costs of energy generation because the economics pretty much dictate it. Energy is manifestly expensive here. They don't have the luxury of kicking the externalities can way down the road like
Similarly, we had had a quick conversation in an airport cafe with a retired couple from Wisconsin and/or the DC suburbs. They were going to visit an old nanny of theirs in Bordeaux who used to vacation in the south of France but no longer does because she has a pool in her backyard. Given the choice, few Americans would make an either/or choice like that. We'd wrangle a way to do both, whenever possible.
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