A Bit of Rain

I used to make fun of southern cities in the United States for shutting down when they were tormented by an inch of snow. My friends – I have witnessed the unthinkable. Mild rain, it seems, can shut a place down as well.

Last weekend, the rains started falling, harder than they have here in Bahrain in over 5 years. I would consider it mildly heavy, by Minnesota standards. The type of stuff where you need your wipers on full blast and running from your house to your car will give you a thorough soaking. However, as a mostly desert country, Bahrain is not prepared for this type of rain.

My ride to school, which is usually about 10 minutes, took 1 hour, because of traffic. As I arrived at school, many students had not shown up, as it would take them a few hours to reach school. Some people just didn’t come. The buildings are not prepared for this kind of rain, either. Many rooms at school were leaking. Combined with student absences, school was canceled for the day. As we tried to drive home, there were massive puddles, and some cars stuck in the new ponds. I realized that a climate like this has no need for drainage systems.

When we got home, my roommates and I realized that our windows are not rain proof either. Our whole living room was filled with water. Now, this wasn’t a big deal, as its all tile, but it was still a pain in the butt to clean up.

However, for all the problems and inconveniences, the rain has been awesome. It’s getting cool now, enough for a light jacket, and the rain is relaxing. I’m also realizing that there is such a thing as too much sunshine. I’m all about the cloudy, stormy days every once in a while. About once a week, or so.