If you look at your weather prediction charts you will see that in rainy seasons the good news is that hotels are cheaper. We booked cheap breaks in Cumbria, the Lake District in England. Over in the Far East we booked a holiday at a tourist resort in Thailand.
Problems
Rain - expected or unexpected? A little bit or rain won't hurt - but could change your plans.
Answers
Be prepared. Check seasons. In Singapore always have a small folding umbrella.
Stories
Thailand
In Thailand I was on holiday with my son and our boat trip was cancelled. So instead we booked a tour with a driver. Not the dearest tour which the receptionist wanted to sell us. The cheapest tour.
We had expected a closed air-conditioned taxi. And a driver who spoke some English, with a map in Thai. We pointed to the places on the bilingual brochure. He nodded glumly, demanded the money, and waved us to get in under the dripping canopy, which had a hole, and water running down a metal strut into the footwell. I quipped to my son, "Just like home, in your convertible car'.
Could we cancel? No. The driver wanted his money. The big tours were full or already departed. We did not want to sit in our hotel all day. The swimming pool was closed, umbrellas down, poolside bar not operating. So we went.
We saw a lot of rain on mountains and fields. We understood the local economy - the agriculture, that some crops might be ruined, that others would grow well. We understood the tourist industry for taxi drivers, for hotels, for tour operators.
We saw only about half the local sights listed on the tour. At least we saw some of them.
But our photos of temples were not the best. At the time we were disappointed and cross with the driver and each other. Years later we still laugh about it.
Singapore
Rainy season.
Taxis and Airport
In Singapore when we first went to live and work there we did not know that you could not get a taxi easily when it was raining. On one occasion my husband was going to the airport to catch a plane and we could not get a taxi. If you are in a four or five star hotel, the man at the entrance of the hotel taxi queue will give priority to hotel guests going to the airport.
By now we knew how to hail a taxi. You wave your hand downwards, like patting a dog.
But we were leaving from a ranted flat. My husband stood on one corner trying to hail taxis, all full, red signs. I stood on another corner looking for taxis with the green available sign coming from the opposite direction. He had the umbrella to protect his clothes and bag and paperwork.
After standing around on corners trying to hail a taxi, he ran back and got his motorbike to ride to the airport.
This year I could not have a swim in the morning because I delayed until it started raining. We were going out for lunch.
Lunch In Singapore
We planned to meet at 1 pm for lunch on Chinese New Year, a week long national holiday, like Xmas, starting with a Reunion Dinner at home and in restaurants (higher prices and crowds and fully booked restaurants).
I knew we should have arranged to meet at noon because if everybody is late for lunch at one, you don't all sit and order until 1.30 and lunch arrives at 2. You run the risk that last orders are at 2.30 and the restaurant closes at 2.30 or 3.
We did not arrive until 1.15 because:
Torrential rain started and we decided to wait ten minutes to see if things got better. No.
So we took the lift downstairs, arrived at the condo entrance, saw the rain, and went back for an umbrella.
Back down at the entrance, we saw a taxi dropping somebody off. We waited while they unloaded and paid, got in, gave directions to a driver. He did not understand the restaurant name, nor the street name. He wrote it down on his hand in Chinese characters. We got out.
We walked downhill to the station, much slower than usual, dodging people with umbrellas, puddles, slippery leaves, dead worms, live snails. At our destination, instead of walking off, we stood under the shelter to consult the paper map and satnav on a mobile phone. We could not stop people to ask them the way because they were running to get out of the rain. The short cut across the grass was muddy so we took the longer paved area around the field.
Fortunately, the people we were meeting were also late. If I were planning another meeting, I would leave half an hour early, take a book to read, walk around taking photos if it was sunny, have time in hand if it was raining.
When we came back to base, in no hurry, it had stopped raining. I took a lovely photo of a flower with raindrops on the petals.
Tips
Leave early for airports and restaurants.
Swim whilst it's sunny.
Beware of events around hotel on condo pools - weddings, paid for dinners, public holidays. Marquees will be erected around the pool during the day of an event. You may be denied access, or simply distracted by the numbers of men walking about carrying scaffolding and disturbed when they make a noise.
Swim early in the week and early in the day, before afternoon rain, the heat of the mid-day sun, and evening events closing pools.
Shut windows.
Bring in washing.
Take raincoats and raincoats and umbrellas and overshoes or spare socks.
Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
