Pouring with rain in heavy, vertical, stripes, the Monsoon arrived this morning, without warning, without a flash of lightening or clap of thunder - here it is! Tappish's round Bengali face was smiling, as he remarked that everyone would be opening a bottle to celebrate tonight. Swishing along in the rickshaw, up to its mudguards in water, with my arms wet and a little breeze, I felt cool for the first time in a year, I could feel the rain soaking into my clothing. No wonder everyone is smiling and standing in the rain and just getting wet for the hell of it - you can feel the relief and joy - no umbrellas in sight, everyone soaking in the rain - men stand in covered corners, grinning and drenched, drinking a glass of tea and reveling in the down pipes exploding with water, gutters gushing, puddles becoming lakes and within half-an-hour, everything flooded. Rain cleaning away the dust, sluicing the drains and soaking the land. One half of the newly divided Jetalpur Road is flooded and traffic is now using one lane. The flat roofed concrete buildings, typical of this part of India, are not insulated, so they heat slowly during the day and then radiate heat at night, as they slowly cool down, making them unbearable furnaces. But now, everywhere, the lovely sound of rain falling and soaking the concrete and cooling everything down. Oh, the pleasure of a 'grey' day after a year of 'blue' ones !
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