Taiwan has seasons.
They are not like Ohio's four seasons, however. An Ohio winter can be brutal with subzero (F) temperatures, blowing snow, and even worse, freezing rain. Spring is always a welcome sight after winter's hardship. Summer starts out pleasant and heats up till August. Even then, weather forecasters make a big deal about above ninety degree (F) days. But compared to the winter temps, ninety is sweltering
An Ohio fall is a wonderful thing to experience. Of all the seasons, this is the one I miss the most. Sunny days, warm breezes, comfortable temperatures; warm during the day, but cool enough to sit around a bonfire at night. What's not to love?
Taiwan's seasons have things to offer, as well. For example, during the winter months, the temperature can easily be in the seventies (F) for days on end. Its the kind of weather where you start off with a light sweater, lose it during the lunch time hour, and put it back on as the sun begins to set. Its the time of the year you can wear both long sleeves and short sleeves.
Don't get me wrong, there can be cold snaps when the temperature drops into the fifties (F) and if the thermometer decides to say there, life can become downright chilly. Now I know fifty doesn't sound cold to my hardy Ohioan friends and family, but there are some factors that play into that chilliness.
The majority of buildings are manufactured with concrete. Concrete likes to hold in the cold. Taiwan buildings have tile floors as well. There is nothing as cold as a cold tile floor.
If I was in Ohio, I would simply turn the furnace on and pump some heat into the cold walls and floor. Unfortunately, most Taiwanese homes and buildings do not come equipped with this capability. After several cold days, the inside of a house becomes just as cold as the outside. We have experienced only one winter where it got cold and stayed cold. That was the winter it snowed in Taichung and many people lost their lives due to the coldness.
Between winter and summer comes the rainy season. Technically, this is spring, but the temperatures can be chilly or they can be hot. The predominant factor is the rain. It rains a lot. Not all day, but every day. There is still sunshine, but you can expect liquid to fall from the sky during some point of the day.
Except this year. I kept waiting for the afternoon thunderstorms to arrive. Two springs ago, a thunderstorm with torrential downpour and lightning thunder would arrive every day just in time for the students to be dismissed.
But, not this year.
I think it just forgot.
Until this past week.
It has rained every day, almost all day for the last four or five days.
Yesterday, in Taichung 5.3 inches of rain fell.
That's nothing compared to Taipei. On Friday, 4.72 inches fell in just two hours. The northern part received a total of 12 inches in a twenty-four hour period.
Elementary schools all the way up to universities were forced to close due to flooding.
The rains that come in May and June are called the plum rains. These along with the rain that comes with typhoons make up Taiwan's rainy season. They offset the drier seasons of fall and winter.
Besides the obvious benefits of rain, it also helps clean the air. We have experienced an increase in air pollution this past year. But, when it rains, the air is cleaned and fresh air is the beneficial result.
I guess after all this rain, we will have squeaky clean air!
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