Climate affects how people live. Australia enjoys a temperate climate: houses embrace the outdoors: living is casual. In the tropical north, life revolves around the dramatic monsoonal wet and dry seasons. Further south as far as Sydney on the east coast, and Perth on the west coast, the climate is agreeably subtropical. But everywhere on the continent, summers are hot, often humid. Australians accept the idea of living comfortably with the heat. Verandahs, patios, terraces, and even outdoor rooms, allow a way of life dedicated to feeling connected to the outdoors. The early European settlers in Australia tried to perpetuate European customs and demanded protection from the harsh light and heat. From colonial India they imported the bungalow, with dark interiors and encircling verandahs protecting the core of the house.