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What's happening with the rains and the seasons?


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When I tell French people that Flo and I go to Thailand (cough) in August, they all think we're crazy - "the rainy season?".  Well that may be true for tropical Phuket, but not for Pattaya.

Jacko was "struggling through the rain" on his bike yesterday (in early June).  Isn't this supposed to be the "hot" season?

I tell people it just seems to rain when it wants - August no more than anytime else.  Some of the photos and vids of Pattaya floods and torrents on the Darkside are positively apocalyptic and the time of year is not predictable.

Am I wrong?

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I've only ever been to Thailand in July or August. That's because by then I've had enough of winter. 

Here we are in a rain shadow area, it can drizzle for several days in spring and autumn. But we rarely get huge downpours. Some areas on the other side of the mountains get rain 300 days a year, and a total of 3 meters (10 feet) a year.

My impression of Thai rain is that it buckets down for an hour or so then stops. It doesnt bother me as I'm on holiday and I just find a bar or restaurant to wait in. But the streets flood easily.

I've never had it rain for more than a couple of hours. But maybe I've been lucky.

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7 minutes ago, awesum4 said:

I've only ever been to Thailand in July or August. That's because by then I've had enough of winter.................................

I've never had it rain for more than a couple of hours. But maybe I've been lucky.

Same-same me for Pattaya.  Sounds like New Zealand is like the UK, with a wet side and a "dry" side "WWWWW" from school geography has stayed with me.

 

 

Warm Wet Winds from the West in Winter (thanks Mr Simpson from B******* Comprehensive).

By the way, awesum4, I thought the islands of New Zealand were looking a bit smaller, and thought it was rising sea levels - then I read your "Interests".

awesum4.JPG

Roll on August.......!

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The South Island especially has way more extreme rainfall differences than the UK.  We have very tall mountain range (the Rockies little brother) running the entire length of the island at 90 degrees to the predominant winds.  

Those winds cross Australia and get hot and dry, they then cross the Tasman sea and pick up heaps of moisture. When they hit the Alps they try to rise but cant and so dump the moisture.

I think northern India and surrounding countries have the same effect with the monsoon winds trying to cross the Himalayas.

The only other place I've seen this (but even more markedly) is the Big Island (Hawaii) which is all volcanic lava. One side is really wet and the lava has broken down to produce really fertile soils ( remember the tv news about the lava flows last year pushing through lush countryside). The other side gets no rain the lava takes centuries to break down, it's a black desert.

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During my recent trip last month, there was one big downpour when I arrived , plus some rain on the fireworks night. In the RP it's not yet rainy season so in Manila (well, Bacoor) it was dry, humid and bloody hot, rainy season traditionally starts in late June, however, oddly, in all the years we've been there I've only been really frightened once , when the wind and raIn was so strong it broke one of our windows.

A few years back it all went a bit wrong when El Nino struck. The weather went haywire for a year or so and was very unpredictable.

Regarding Pattaya, I used to travel Sept / Oct and enjoyed the rainy season for the break in the weather it would bring. One visit to the Kings Palace in BKK reminds me of when it rained for only 10 minutes, and it was like pouring water onto hot coals in a Sauna, it got bloody hot for about 1/2 hour afterwards, like a micro climate. I had to go to the toilets as it was the only place with A/C!.

I actually prefer rainy season, less chance of bad sunburn if , like myself you are fair skinned, and despite the dangers of wading through effluent, there is something liberating about being stuck in a beer bar watching it all unfold on Beach Road.

 

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Technically we maybe in the wet season  now but Pattaya escapes the worst of the rains. June - August there is likely to be some rain but not everyday and generally not for prolonged periods. September and October are the wettest months but even then Pattaya does not get as much rain as other areas such as Phuket and much of Isaan.

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16 hours ago, capdagde said:

Jacko was "struggling through the rain" on his bike yesterday (in early June).  Isn't this supposed to be the "hot" season?

No. Rainy season starts from end of May through to the end of October. Prior to that is the hot season. Don't get me wrong, rainy doesn't mean cool, simply cooler. Plenty of heat between the showers, Heaviest rains come late in the season. 

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23 hours ago, awesum4 said:

The South Island especially has way more extreme rainfall differences than the UK.  We have very tall mountain range (the Rockies little brother) running the entire length of the island at 90 degrees to the predominant winds.  

Those winds cross Australia and get hot and dry, they then cross the Tasman sea and pick up heaps of moisture. When they hit the Alps they try to rise but cant and so dump the moisture.

I think northern India and surrounding countries have the same effect with the monsoon winds trying to cross the Himalayas.

The only other place I've seen this (but even more markedly) is the Big Island (Hawaii) which is all volcanic lava. One side is really wet and the lava has broken down to produce really fertile soils ( remember the tv news about the lava flows last year pushing through lush countryside). The other side gets no rain the lava takes centuries to break down, it's a black desert.

One more try..... :cry1

awesum4.JPG

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42 minutes ago, capdagde said:

One more try..... :cry1

awesum4.JPG

What can I say,  I have a healthy appetite

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 6/10/2019 at 4:48 AM, midlifecrisis said:

fish, sausage or both?

:poke

Mutton

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First time around, Nakhon Phanom in 1975, I seem to remember truly impressive rain beginning in May.

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On 6/8/2019 at 11:47 PM, awesum4 said:

The only other place I've seen this (but even more markedly) is the Big Island (Hawaii) which is all volcanic lava. One side is really wet and the lava has broken down to produce really fertile soils ( remember the tv news about the lava flows last year pushing through lush countryside). The other side gets no rain the lava takes centuries to break down, it's a black desert.

I am on the big island now (0n the west (dry) side), and we get maybe 5 inches of rain a year vs. 300 inches a year on the east side.

But Lava does not have much nutrition and to make soil they take macadamia shells, crush them and mix with crushed lava rock to grow anything.

The other problem is that it never freezes so ice does not break up the lava to allow dirt to form.

As I am typing this, it is raining outside....

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4 hours ago, MrMango said:

I am on the big island now (0n the west (dry) side), and we get maybe 5 inches of rain a year vs. 300 inches a year on the east side.

But Lava does not have much nutrition and to make soil they take macadamia shells, crush them and mix with crushed lava rock to grow anything.

The other problem is that it never freezes so ice does not break up the lava to allow dirt to form.

As I am typing this, it is raining outside....

I played golf on the Kona coast once. Rocks instead of sand in the traps. We went to Volcanoes National Park and I remember mile after mile of macadamia trees along the way.

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