Weather Change

We are currently in what is known as the rainy season (aka The Wet if you are Australian). Traditionally it rains all night and drys out during the first hour of the morning, leaving behind cloudy skies and a very humid atmosphere, and lasts from late October to the end of February. Conversely the dry period is just that - high temperatures, cloudless skies and very sporadic showers.

However for the last three years the rainy season has failed to materialise. The general climate pattern in the region has been unsettled (possibly disrupted by deforestation) and rather than light and long rain showers we now get sudden, torrential downpours. These have been the cause of extensive flooding, triggering mudslides, throughout SE Asia.

This weekend's weather is a perfect example of how random it has all become: Saturday was clear and hot (about 35C) while Sunday morning was overcast and mild (perfect for our bike ride in the hills) but in the afternoon a howling wind blew up, thunder and lightening all around, 30cm of rain fell in 30 minutes and a 20ft tall water spout was spotted off the coast. Today it is clear and sunny again.