Oct
14
Filed Under (Malian culture) by Rob on 14-10-2011

It really rains!

That’s my front yard in a rain storm – water water everywhere! Thankfully, our mini trampoline came in handy for the kids!

You see, in Africa you don’t get the drizzle-for-days-on-end like in England. In fact, fine rain is quite rare, as is rain without a cracking thunder storm! This means that a lot of rain falls in a short time, causing flooding (like in this post).

Here’s a short video showing what my street looks like during a rain storm – veritable road turned river:

In Benin, we had the same problem; worse in fact. Watch this one to see me riding on the back of a motobike taxi through a 14″ flood in Cotonou:

(Click here for the original blog post).

Meanwhile, here in Mali rainy season is all but over and there is a dry, crisp feel to the air we haven’t experienced for a few months. Humidity is now as low as 24%, but it’s still pretty warm. We are now eagerly awaiting the coolness which comes with the Harmattan (blogged about in 2006 and 2007). Here in Mali, the Harmattan lasts so long, it’s actually called ‘Cold Season’ and temps can get as low as 12 Celsius!!

Am I talking about the weather again?? Anyone would think I was British…



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