And Then It Rains!

#sol18- September 11, 2018

“The Wet Season
The wet season comes courtesy of the southwest monsoon which blows from May to October, bringing with it some 75% of Cambodia’s annual rainfall. Not surprisingly, the wet season is characterised by rain, and during the peak of wet season from July to September it can rain as much as two out of every three days. However, the rainy days are usually just a few hours of heavy downpour and not all-day rain, although the latter do occur.” Source

I have to admit I love the rainy season in the tropics. Which is lucky, as it lasts nearly half the year. I have lived here just under tow months, so I can not really note patterns yet,  but here is what I know so far- it seems to mostly rain in the late afternoon.

Today it was a race against time. My first choice for a slice was a peek at our school’s butterfly garden, but it turns out it is locked up after school, so I missed that. Next, I thought I would photograph all the amazing spaces our students have to play at recess but to be honest, I was too lazy to walk out to the field and since that is the biggest space it did not seem complete, so on to plan c (also known as I had no idea what I would slice about…).

As I hopped in my tuk-tuk on the way home I made a snap decision to stop at Super Duper (my closest grocery store) before going home. I asked Mr. Bo my wonderful driver) if he thought I would beat the rain and he laughed. The sky was darkening- I was not sure, but it was only 4:25, so I went for it. Bad luck for me the traffic was not great- we were taking longer than usual and the sky went from dark gray to genuinely black in places. By the time we finally reached the store, it looked like the rain was imminent.

Cruising the aisles I scooped up what I came for- bananas and moisturizer (okay a few other things may have jumped into my basket too, but I was in and out in five minutes). Now my dilemma- to take another tuk-tuk home or chance the rain and walk (realistically only about a 7-minute walk). It wasn’t raining yet, so I ventured out on my own.

Sidewalks are inconsistent (or non-existent) for much of the walk, so I skirted the traffic- a busy combination of motor scooters, tuk-tuks, and cars. I was halfway home when I suddenly felt a heavy plop- the first rain drop!

I continued on- relieved that no more rain fell. I made it to my street and it started sprinkling- no big deal. I made it to the elevator and boom- the first rumble of thunder and the sky opened- it was pelting down and I was glad to be indoors.

Just over fifteen minutes later the sky was clear- a beautiful sunset was just beginning and the puddles were the only reminder that the rain had come and gone-until tomorrow.

A slice from a former student.