> In most of France, Belgium or Germany it's impossible to find apartments with ceiling fans or air conditioning. I live in Germany, in a house that's nearly 5

> In most of France, Belgium or Germany it's impossible to find apartments with ceiling fans or air conditioning. I live in Germany, in a house that's nearly 500 years old. There's one room that's holding up well against the heat, but the rest of the house is getting uncomfortable. In the past there used to be days that were this hot, but now it's the second year where we get weeks and weeks of >30 degrees. Air conditioning was just not necessary so far, but I'm seriously considering adding some. > Possibly the worst offence in Germany and especially in Belgium is that you can't ask restaurants/bars for tap water. The discussion is a bit unclear what you mean here, if that's about tap water at the table, or tap water in general. When it's hot, I never had issues asking for a refill of a bottle I bring along or a glass of water "on the go". I'd stand near the counter, drink it, thank them, and go my merry way. Tap water at the table is a different matter, and yes, it's uncommon here and you might be considered a cheap-skate, as drinks are part of the calculation to make things work (food really is cheaper in Germany than in many other Western countries though).