Rain

The rainy season is well and truly here, with torrential downpours for several hours every day. It is a relief after the long dry and dusty season, and it is a little cooler... but not much! The rivers and paddy fields are all filling up fast, and there is a lush greenness everywhere. The rain is accompanied by fierce wind, thunder and lightning, and so much water falls in such a short time that the roads quickly become rivers. Nobody goes out in the rain; there are even “resting cottages” by the roadside for motorcyclists to shelter under. The rain seeps in under the doors of my house, but as I have a tiled floor this is not a problem. Last week, a couple of colleagues and I were in the covered market in Kampong Thom when a violent thunderstorm started. We were stuck there, so killed time by eating a sweet dish, but in the end we had to brave the weather. We bought 4 metres of plastic sheeting to shelter under and then waded through the stinking market sewage to get home. Hideous!