S.P. Publishing Group Co., Ltd. 11/1 Soi 3 Bamrungburi Rd., T. Prasingh, A. Muang., Chiang Mai 50200 Tel. 053 - 814 455-6 Fax. 053 - 814 457 E-mail: guidelin@loxinfo.co.th

What to expect in JULY 2008

Statistics

	Average temperature 27 C Average rainfall 160.8 mm Cloud cover 8.5/10 Humidity 78 % Rainy days 18.7 Sunshine 153.6 hrs.

This is definitely the rainy season, with lots of cloud cover and fairly unpredictable and sometimes heavy falls of rain. These will increase in frequency and intensity through the next two months. But unpredictable is the best way to describe the weather of this season, though generally the longer a dry spell lasts, the hotter and more humid the atmosphere becomes, and the more likely it is a downpour is in the immediate offing. In other words, wherever you’re going - up in the hills, or down here on the plain - it’s a good idea to have a folding umbrella handy, or a light variety of waterproof.

The fact is though there’s been a trend over the fifty years records have been kept in Chiang Mai for the rainfall to lessen. In 1955, the average running yearly rainfall average for the five previous years was 1,475 mm. In each of the succeeding five-year periods, the total has decreased, until now the average is just over 1,000 mm. Almost certainly this is a consequence of the recent loss of forest cover all over the Southeast Asian mainland, though it’s also likely that world weather trends are going to have an increasingly important effect here, though just what those will be remains to be seen.

Motorists both in town and out in the country should be aware that driving conditions deteriorate during this period. The heavy rains break the roads up, and repairs tend to be put on hold until the monsoon is over. In other words, if you’re driving, you should watch out for some fairly spectacular ruts and holes in the road surfaces - and that goes for downtown Chiang Mai as well. On the other hand, if you’re driving on unsurfaced roads in the hills, make sure your vehicle’s up to the sometimes horrendous conditions you’ll encounter - that you have chains for the wheels, and winches and spades to dig yourself out of whatever you drop into.

The nastier bugs are more active in this season too. Wherever you are, make sure the water you drink has been purified (i.e., never take it out of the tap). In the city, standards of food purity (apart from the unavoidable pesticide and other chemical residues) are not bad. Out in the country and up in the hills, on the other hand, eating out’s a bit of a lottery, and it's not a bad idea to have iron rations with you for emergencies. You should also avoid getting bitten by mosquitoes unless you want haemorrhagic fever and malaria as mementoes of your visit.