The Rain in Spain Does NOT Fall Mainly on the Plain

In fact, much of the rain in Spain falls here in San Sebastian. You would think that we would have looked into the average rainfall total before moving here, but we knew that the climate was fairly similar to Seattle, only a few degrees warmer on average. Imagine our surprise when we discovered that San Sebastian’s average yearly rain totals exceed Seattle’s totals by A LOT! Seattle typically gets about 37.5 inches of rain each year. However, for the past four years in a row, Seattle recorded more than 44 inches of rain per year. That was the wettest four-year stretch in Seattle’s recorded history. Sounds remarkable right? Well, San Sebastian averages 68 inches per year! That’s 55% more rain than Seattle.

We experienced one of the coldest and wettest winters ever in Seattle (2016-2017) but found it to be manageable because of the way the rain falls in Seattle – it is generally steady but not truly heavy. It does seem constant, especially with the accompanying grey skies. Yet many people in Seattle don’t carry or use umbrellas. When we moved to Seattle, my sister Shira told me I’d look like a tourist using an umbrella. Generally, a hooded rain jacket is sufficient. Leaving your umbrella at home is not a risky blunder. In contrast, here in San Sebastian, when it rains it pours. None of that weak Seattle-style mist. You do NOT want to get caught without an umbrella far from home. Not only do you need an umbrella, but the small foldable travel type is woefully inadequate. The foldable umbrella is your “just in case it rains” umbrella. What you need here is a big golf-style umbrella – just for yourself. Otherwise you’ll find your pants getting quite wet when out and about.

Last week we joined our fellow San Sebastian residents as proud owners of two giant umbrellas. We are now well-equipped to handle all the rain that comes our way.

Let it rain,

Shana & Jeff