Rain

                                         Expat Living in Malta:

          The Rain in Malta Stays Mainly

                          on the Streets

 

 

 

                   Water on the Streets in Malta--not good

 

This is for any of you who think Malta or anyplace else in the Mediterranean is Paradise.  It's not. At least not in the winter months when it rains long and hard.

 

Let me start by saying this: I hate rain. I don't care if we need it, if farmers need it, if the little baby plants need it, I hate it.  Daughter B has been with me for the past week and it's been great--except for the rain. We had some wonderful sunny and almost-sunny days in which we could do some fun things like horseback riding along the cliffs in Golden Bay, hiking along the Dingli cliffs, strolling through Rabat and walking to Valletta from our place in Sliema.

 

But for the past few days, it's been endless rain.  And it's not only the rain I hate, but it's the slippery streets.  The dust turns to mud and covers the streets like brown slime.  You can't do laundry for days.  Since very few Maltese homes have a drier, you can wash your clothes--but they won't dry.  And if you had them on the line, you got them washed several days in a row.

 

Mr. S., our amateur meteorologist, says that the rain in these past few days totaled to only one-half to one inch.  I find that hard to believe since the flooding in the streets was way over a an inch up into my sneakers.  

 

There are some streets, especially Tower Road and The Strand by the sea, that you literally can't cross without wading up to your ankles in water.

 

But, says, Mr. S., "What you see in Malta is mostly the water that is running downhill on the streets because of bad drainage and collecting in certain valley streets and dips in the roads."   Now, that is something I can believe.

Here are some more invaluable facts about the rainy season in Malta:

- Malta needs about 600 mm during the wet season.  That's 15 inches.  It rarely rains from May to October, which is fine with me.

 

- So far, Malta has had 136 mm of rain in January--about four inches.  "That's on the wet side, but not unusual," says Mr. S.

 

- So how does that compare with the US and the rest of Europe?  A whole day of heavy rain might be one inch total in Europe; on the East coast of the US (where I left for a better climate), the remnants of a hurricane might cause five inches or more, so I'm told. 

 

In fact, you need a really bad thunderstorm or special orographic circumstances to produce a lot more rain--like moist air being squeezed against and lifted up over the Alps.

 

Yes, that was my next question: what does orographic mean?   Orographic means rain caused by an air mass being lifted up--and with rain drops forming by condensation.    The Monsoons are orographic--warm, humid air being pressed against the Himalayas, says Mr. S.  "That doesn't happen in Malta because hills aren't high enough."

 

So what do you take away from all this?  Don't come to Malta in the winter (i.e. rainy season) for a vacation or holiday--unless you like going to the movies.

 

Special thanks to Mr. S.

 

 

Comments

[Mr.S]

Well , now we have it official as well ! It wasn't just Ilene's impression . The rainfall in January 2009 was the highest ever reported for this month . So all the rain days did add up to a new record !
There is hope though , the first week in Febuary is going to be dry and very mild !
The perfect weather to start a CELTA course !

[Sennuwy (an ancient Egyptian name)]

Thanks, Dee. Isn't it funny how we're never satisfied? I have to say that we were rewarded with a gorgeous day today. I actually had to take my coat off in the sun. I loved it!

[Dee Owen]

Glad your daughter got back safely and that she'll be back to Malta. Good to know that that was unusual weather for Malta. Here, now is soooo dry, hot and windy I almost wish it was the rainy season!

[Sennuwy (an ancient Egyptian name)]

Thanks, Steve. From what I can tell, you have a very good grasp of the English language. I've heard from a Brit who has lived here 35 years that this has been a hard winter in Malta. It's usually more mild. Well, there's always next year!--------Ilene

[Steve H]

Thanks for all the statistics, I too recently did a post on the weather, my measure of recent rainfall here was in feet rather than inches.

('Exaggerate' To represent as greater than is actually the case; overstate.)

Well I was trying to make a point, and my limited grasp of the English language left me no choice.

[Sennuwy (an ancient Egyptian name)]

Hi Dee,
Thanks for your comment and sharing your experience with the rainy season in your part of the world. My daughter got back safely to NY, and says she really misses Malta. So I think she'll be back!----------Ilene

[Dee Owen]

Mine too for those poor people in Europe.
Sorry to hear you're having such wet 'feet'! I can empathize...our rainy season is round about April to December. We also have those awful muddy streets too with water up to our ankles and past sometimes. But its amazing...in a couple of hours a foot of water has disappeared! Who knows where, as the drainage is abysmal!
Hope you and your daughter get some more sunny days together soon!

[Sennuwy (an ancient Egyptian name)]

My condolences to those people in Spain and elsewhere in Europe who have lost their lives and property due to the recent tragic storms ----Ilene