When someone says the phrase "rainy season" they generally mean it. It's the rainy season in Cambodia, and that means daily rains that more than likely rival even London's notorious rain clouds. For someone who loves the rain but lives in Colorado, where we're more known for fires as opposed to rainfall, the almost daily sound of rain is a welcome change. In fact, one of the first words I learned in Khmer was actually the word for rain: plean (pronounced plee-an). Usually the rains come when you least expect them. The sky grows dark, but it doesn't rain for another hour or so. And when it does you're walking home. At least its beautiful sound tempers the fact that you're soaked to the skin in a matter of seconds.
The sound of the rain.
What becomes of all this rain in Cambodia? Much of the rain that falls here feeds into two main rivers, the Mekong and the Tonle Sap River. One of Cambodia's most prominent geographic features, the Tonle Sap River and its Lake are geographic oddities. From April to October, the Tonle Sap flows in its normal seaward direction emptying the Tonle Sap Lake into the Pacific Ocean. However, in October when the ice melt from the Himalayas finally flows to Phnom Penh with the Mekong, the volume of water is so great in the Mekong that a magical feat of physics actually reverses the flow of the Tonle Sap River to go into the Tonle Sap Lake. The reversal of the flow of the River causes the lake to expand, flooding the area and allowing fish to multiply. Many fisherman have taken up residence in the Tonle Sap Lake in houses on stilts to take advantage of the plethora of fish during the dry season.
Wait, so the Mekong has more water in it during the dry season? Yes, actually, because it has spent the past half of the year collecting the Spring ice melt in the Himalayas and the monsoon rains from 5 other countries that also have a rainy season1. It just takes a few months for all of the water to get to Cambodia, which is on the southernmost end of continental Southeast Asia. That's a long way for water to travel only to reverse its course to spend more time in the Tonle Sap River. Yet, the annual flooding of the Tonle Sap River basin keeps the rice farms growing their excellent crop in the dry season through a vast irrigation network.
Yet, the rain is not always welcome in Cambodia. Many people are rightly concerned with what comes with the rain: thunderstorms. As one of the main causes of death in the rural areas of Cambodia, lightning is a very real danger here. Without much protection in the wide open rice fields, many people take shelter underneath palm trees, which unfortunately only draw the lightning to them. Luckily, cities are more immune to this danger, but many people still take extra precautions if even a hint of thunder comes through the clouds. The streets around my host family's house rapidly become empty and people avoid using electronics so as not to get a surge. Of course, not everyone takes the lightning as seriously since we are in the city, but I have heard this advice from several Cambodians. But this danger brings about 75% of the nation's annual rainfall 1. So as the summer rains set in wherever you are in the world, don't forget to steer clear of lightning and enjoy the sounds.
The sound of the rain.
What becomes of all this rain in Cambodia? Much of the rain that falls here feeds into two main rivers, the Mekong and the Tonle Sap River. One of Cambodia's most prominent geographic features, the Tonle Sap River and its Lake are geographic oddities. From April to October, the Tonle Sap flows in its normal seaward direction emptying the Tonle Sap Lake into the Pacific Ocean. However, in October when the ice melt from the Himalayas finally flows to Phnom Penh with the Mekong, the volume of water is so great in the Mekong that a magical feat of physics actually reverses the flow of the Tonle Sap River to go into the Tonle Sap Lake. The reversal of the flow of the River causes the lake to expand, flooding the area and allowing fish to multiply. Many fisherman have taken up residence in the Tonle Sap Lake in houses on stilts to take advantage of the plethora of fish during the dry season.
Wait, so the Mekong has more water in it during the dry season? Yes, actually, because it has spent the past half of the year collecting the Spring ice melt in the Himalayas and the monsoon rains from 5 other countries that also have a rainy season1. It just takes a few months for all of the water to get to Cambodia, which is on the southernmost end of continental Southeast Asia. That's a long way for water to travel only to reverse its course to spend more time in the Tonle Sap River. Yet, the annual flooding of the Tonle Sap River basin keeps the rice farms growing their excellent crop in the dry season through a vast irrigation network.
Yet, the rain is not always welcome in Cambodia. Many people are rightly concerned with what comes with the rain: thunderstorms. As one of the main causes of death in the rural areas of Cambodia, lightning is a very real danger here. Without much protection in the wide open rice fields, many people take shelter underneath palm trees, which unfortunately only draw the lightning to them. Luckily, cities are more immune to this danger, but many people still take extra precautions if even a hint of thunder comes through the clouds. The streets around my host family's house rapidly become empty and people avoid using electronics so as not to get a surge. Of course, not everyone takes the lightning as seriously since we are in the city, but I have heard this advice from several Cambodians. But this danger brings about 75% of the nation's annual rainfall 1. So as the summer rains set in wherever you are in the world, don't forget to steer clear of lightning and enjoy the sounds.
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