From Friday night until about 3 pm Saturday, Ubon was hit with continuous, torrential rains. It poured with little to no abatement for over 12 hours. Fortunately, on my way home Friday night the streets had not yet been flooded. However, I was completely drenched and my jeans are still trying to dry. By Saturday morning the streets were flooded. The drainage had filled up and the streets had anywhere from 8 inches to 2 feet of water milling about. I could not take my bike out although some cars did ramble through the streets. Because of my present location I did not have the best view of the flooding. To get some excellent photographs check out this flickr page. By mid afternoon the rain slowed to a spit and the roads drained. I heard of many homes being flooded, including the offices at my school. My room got a little water through some leaks in the plaster walls, but nothing to cause any problems.
It is the raining season and throughout the last month we regularly have sustained downpours. They occur daily and one never knows when it will happen or for how long. I have heard many Thais say – The rain is coming – only for no rain to fall, usually using wind as the predictor. The unpredictability of it makes riding a motorbike precarious. While riding the rain can start and rain drops turn into b-bs, firing into your face. You squint, hope no cars drive by to give you splash, and ride slow, slogging through the streets. Sometimes you can try to wait out the rain, but, Murphy’s Law, those will be the times that the rain continues for several hours. Nevertheless, yesterday’s rain was new for me and I can only think back to a hurricane and a nor’easter I experienced in Connecticut as comparable in terms of continuous hard falling rain and flooding, respectively. This was just rain, no wind.
In other news, I am moving and cannot wait. By the end of the month I will be out of my 1 room, sterile, nearly windowless, existence and find myself in a wonderful little 3 room home that is comfortable and refreshing. It is bigger, better, and cheaper.
It is the raining season and throughout the last month we regularly have sustained downpours. They occur daily and one never knows when it will happen or for how long. I have heard many Thais say – The rain is coming – only for no rain to fall, usually using wind as the predictor. The unpredictability of it makes riding a motorbike precarious. While riding the rain can start and rain drops turn into b-bs, firing into your face. You squint, hope no cars drive by to give you splash, and ride slow, slogging through the streets. Sometimes you can try to wait out the rain, but, Murphy’s Law, those will be the times that the rain continues for several hours. Nevertheless, yesterday’s rain was new for me and I can only think back to a hurricane and a nor’easter I experienced in Connecticut as comparable in terms of continuous hard falling rain and flooding, respectively. This was just rain, no wind.
In other news, I am moving and cannot wait. By the end of the month I will be out of my 1 room, sterile, nearly windowless, existence and find myself in a wonderful little 3 room home that is comfortable and refreshing. It is bigger, better, and cheaper.