About Rain

Everybody I met here, from colleagues to housemates and friends of friends, has been asking me why I left Italy (pictured as a fairytale land where the sun is always shining) to live in the Netherlands. Most of them believe that the weather here is shit, and when I point out that so far it hasn't been that bad they smile a sardonic smile and tell me "wait and see".

We indeed had a few days of non-stop raining, but the sky is almost always dry on evenings, and today not a single drop was shed.

It may be true that things are gonna get tough when the winter kicks in and the rain will be paired with strong winds and icy temperatures: but I hope by then my immune system will have raised its guard. And after cycling under the rain for a few days, I must say it is not as bad as I thought, but not a pleasant experience either ahah :/

The worst part of it - I am gonna be totally honest with you guys - is that rain makes my hair go curly. No joke here. This, for me, is the worst thing. I have been fighting a battle of brushing for years against my sloppy curls, and it is quite frustrating to be defeated by the weather. Imagine spending 30 minutes of your time brushing, combing and straightening your mane with surgical meticulousness, then after 10 seconds of closing the front door watching your silky and perfect locks turn into a wild frizzy mass that is more intricated than a rastaman's dreadlocks. I am horrified.

The second worst thing is not being able to use an umbrella, A. because it could dangerously function as a sail and drag the bike (and you with it) to smash against a pole or a garbage bin, B. because the umbrella is gonna be all torn and bent by the wind and you might as well throw it away. So, what do you do? You wrap your scarf around your head (Ducth people don't even do this) and then everything smells like rain and wet wool. Plus, you get a sore throat for having your scarf on your head and not your neck.

Using an umbrella on a bike is not a good idea

The third worst thing is putting your buns on the seat to find it soaking wet. You can feel the wet sensation extend rapidly through the layers of clothing until it reaches the soft skin of your butt. Not nice. Then you sit on a white suede chair at a friend's place and leave a dark wet stamp (true story). Definitely not, not nice. Please don't tell me I should wipe the seat before sitting on it, 'cause unlocking the bike under the water is not a fun experience and I would not want to double the torture by having to carry aroung a wet towel or wet seat cover.

The fourth worst thing is having your hands wet and full of dirt after you unchain the bike which was left under the rain. Pair the dirt under your nails to your hands being red and swollen from the cold, and you'll get the perfect desperate homeless look. Maybe I should get some waterproof gloves, or just give in to the weather and do as Dutch people do: ignoring the rain and pretending is not there. The only concession they make is some technical water-proof jacket, but I am not surrendering my fashion sense to bad weather.

My next purchase will be a nice vintage cape, which will make me feel oh-so-cool and oh-so-hipster while I succumb to the rain.

Maybe I am gonna succumb for real, like, I mean, falling with the bike and everything into a canal due to a sidewalk landslide. Sweet. Picture taken on my way home from work.

Have a nice water-proof day!

Linda