Is this the mini wet?

Here in Addis there are two main distinctions in season: wet and dry. The main wet season is around September, and it is known as the big wet. There is also a mini wet around March.

So we expected to be here for just some of the mini wet.

I was walking home from the supermarket the other day, picking my way out along the terribly uneven surface of the path beside the road, thinking “I wouldn’t like to do this in the wet season – it would be horrible.”

On Thursday night, we had some very heavy rain. On Friday, we had a rainy day. You don’t get random rainy days here in Addis, you either get dry days or wet season days. So people started asking, even though it is only early February, “is this the mini wet?” The Ethiopian lady who I heard it asked of, shrugged her shoulders and said “could be…” (After all, how’s she supposed to know?!)

Then over the weekend, we had more rain at night. And I don’t just mean rain. I mean torrential rain.

Last night it stormed (with lightning and thunder) and torrential rain for most of the night. It was quite wild out there.

This morning though, we have already had sun, so hopefully that will remain with us.

If it can be arranged that all the rain falls at night, then that will be quite convenient for me! However, it still makes the roads and the walking paths beside the road extremely sloshy and muddy.

And because we are in an old building, on the top floor, with corrugated iron sheets as the roofing, when the rain slows, we hear drip drip drip into the roof cavity. As yet, we haven’t had any come down to us, but I think that is only a matter of time…

Lying in the comfort and dryness of our bed last night, I couldn’t help but think how many people must die during the wet season here, due to inadequate shelter. Quite a sobering thought. And not one that I know how to do anything about.