I think that the rain here is just as heavy as the rain in Samoa, but it’s hard to tell. One thing that is for sure… it is a lot worse here because Yemen isn’t designed for heavy rainfall like Samoa is. With the exception of the thatched Samoan roofs, they do quite well to build the triangular shaped metal coverings complete with rain catchers and water tanks. Yemen, on the other hand, is known for an architecture style that includes flat-roofed houses. When it rains, the water pools at the top and eventually will leak into the home, having no where else to go.
This problem is one of the reasons why my friend is leaving his current place, and I always thought that he was exaggerating when he talked about his water problems especially since he wasn’t at ground level but rather about a half floor up. I was at his place helping him pack when the rain started. First, the roof leaked and caused a small waterfall that went down his front stairway and started to flow into his apartment. We tried to make a little dam but it was quickly washed away. After giving up the hallway for lost, we worked for a while and I went into his kitchen to get some more plastic bags for padding and found that a small lake had formed. The reason? Well, there was a “light well” outside his kitchen that had a area that was about 6 inches deep and about 10X10 feet, and after an hour it had completely filled up and the water was coming under the door. There was a drain, but it was blocked. After about ten minutes of rooting around in the filthy rainwater we found it and the water subsided. I never had these problems in Samoa, where it rained twice as much.
Moral: Being prepared for stuff like this really does make a huge difference. Samoa, I applaud you.
Things here are pretty quiet and good otherwise. Sorry that I don't have more exciting things to publish to this Blog, but all in all I guess that that is a good thing.
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