Parisians hot under the collar over A/C in apartments

As summer temperatures rise, many Parisians are warming to the idea of installing air conditioning in their apartments, ending a longstanding resistance to what is considered a basic comfort in many capitals elsewhere.

Although commonplace in the French capital's modern office buildings and large stores, air conditioning has never been the norm in Paris homes, where it is considered to be climate-unfriendly, wasteful and -- at least so far -- mostly unnecessary.

Complaints from foreign visitors mystified by Parisians' A/C rejection have usually been met with a Gallic shrug.

But fierce heatwaves in recent years, which experts say are exacerbated by global warming, are causing resolves to crumble -- though the newly converted often feel guilty about the environmental impact of operating a