Tuesday, November 1, 2016

15 degrees North and way out in the Pacific

It's not all sunny skies and paddleboarding in turqoise waters every day around here.  Saipan is tropical, after all, and that means it is also wet.  Very wet.

And I don't mean the occasional light (or heavy) showers that quickly pass, either.  "Tropical" means that sometimes, it dumps rain for hours and hours, and day after day. 


When it really comes down, some of the roads get flooded and the limited amount of sidewalks available soon become irrelevant as giant puddles merge to form small lakes.
It kills me to see folks who depend on bicycles to get them to work or school wrap themselves in ponchos and try to keep moving. Do they pack a change of clothes to bring along, or something? Because I don't see that there is any possible way to protect from a thorough soaking.


The Internet speed tends to drag during the heavy rains, and the pace of life slows down along with it --even more than usual, even.

I suppose it is our version of Autumn.  It's the only time we usually get the urge to curl up with a cup of tea or some soup. But we still keep the fans running and the A/C on the "dry" setting because the humidity indoors, even under sturdy leak-proof ceilings, is harder to fight than ever. Besides, it's still really hot around here.

Tank tops and lightweight shorts and a cup of tea. That's our kind of Fall these days.