It rains everyday.
You might think that I mean rains like it does in Florida every day at 4PM. This is a little different. Cofradía has some amazing views just outside of town. By appearance, the city is surrounded by mountains that every day are clustered by the biggest clouds I have seen. And these clouds can be both good and bad. I will explain:
Big white clouds are usually good, they protect us from the super hot sun and generally when the clouds are fluffy and white, the humidity is not as bad. They also make for a great backdrop to the mountains around school giving the landscape that quintessential image you may or may not think of when you think of the central american landscape. These clouds are usually present in the morning. Sometimes it is a little more gray and then the humidity skyrockets so that when the sun pokes through the clouds, the heat is immobilizing.
Around 3:30 PM or so they real clouds start to roll in. The wind picks up and cools things off a bit (but really not a whole lot) and you can start to see the approaching storms. The humidity and wind start to battle it out for supremacy at which point the wind wins and then it becomes a game of will I make it home for dinner or will I have to wait out the storm until my computer is safe.
You see it rains here everyday. Another interesting anecdote is I have yet to use my rain jacket. If you think that is strange, you are correct. Let’s review. It rains here every single day, and by rain I mean it comes down for a solid 2 hours or so. I have also never needed to use my rain jacket. I too am surprised by this. I have been trapped at the apartments, in a convenience store and at school, but never had my rain jacket.
Some other interesting things that happen when it rains are the electricity goes out. This make for a very interesting time especially when the water then gets shut off. The water thing I don’t quite understand. During a torrential downpour, I don’t think anyone should be worried about running out of water. So here we are at the apartments, with no electricity and no running water. The next step is getting home. You may want to consider the raging river that has just formed on the streets below and how you plan to cross it. As I mentioned, Cofradía only has two paved roads. These paved roads do not come with a sewer system and so the water just flows within the curb like a…oh yeah, river. If you are lucky enough to live on the paved road, your biggest obstacle is crossing without a bridge, if you live off of these roads avoiding the giant pools that have formed and the potential for moving earth underneath your feet should be your primary concern.
I promise to take some photos in the coming days an post them to my picasa site. Though I wouldn’t want the 1st Street stream to run away with my camera. Until then, stay dry.
