An American Nuclear Scientist Visited Paris and London During a Heat Wave, Found No AC in His Airbnb, and Decided to Ship a Window Unit to a British Man He’d Never Met

An American tourist was baffled by European life, particularly with the air conditioning. He was taken aback by the lack of window AC units in homes, considering the heat. He also plans to send one over for the experience. 

The former Nuclear Scientist for the US Department of Energy, Matt Van Swol, described his experience in Europe on his X account @mattvanswol. He visited Paris and London for a few days and noted that the weather was “blistering hot.” 

Naturally, he expected a nice cool breeze once he checked into his Airbnb. He found the room temperature was 80 degrees Fahrenheit (27 degrees Celsius) with no cooling system available. 

When he tried to set the thermostat to a lower temperature, it didn’t work because there was nothing but hot air, according to the man. And so he looked for an alternative, like a window AC unit.

But his efforts quickly proved futile because No window AC unit was available. What he did find, though, was a series of low-powered fans that wouldn’t have done much during a high-temperature situation.

Utterly dumbfounded, he asked, “What are you guys doing?” The tourist acknowledged that parts of Europe do have old homes, but it still didn’t make sense to him that they didn’t have window AC units instead.

He took this up with an Englishman and was left even more confused.  Apparently, the gentleman simply slept on his patio because of the heat. And according to the man, he appeared fairly established.

Reactions on X to the Air Conditioning Post

Determined to prove the joys of owning a window AC unit, he got the man’s address and personally talked to him about it. The man had never heard about the contraption before, which moved the American tourist.

He decided to send a unit from America so that the European could experience it. He said, “You do not have to like that…” He added, “There’s a magical box out there that makes your house cold.”

Lastly, the man emphasized having an AC and said it’s not about cost. He believes that every house in the UK should have AC. The video went viral with nearly 70,000 views as of publication and over 300 comments.

Many were amused by the response to his experience. They made remarks like, “Haha, (it’s like that) every time I’m here!!” Users also praised him for sending a unit to the gentleman he met in the UK and called him a hero for it.

Others addressed the tourist’s belief that the country has plenty of electricity and could run an AC. They said, “Their grid cannot handle AC; they are already having issues.”

Another elaborated, saying, “Their energy costs are very high already, and they’re struggling as it is to meet power demands.” The man has yet to update followers about the Englishman's reaction.

The Daily Dot was unable to independently verify Matt Van Swol's account of his European visit or confirm that a window AC unit was sent as described. Details above reflect the account as shared by @mattvanswol on X and reposted by @Breedlove2019.