Snow continues to pound Europe this winter. Living in the northeast US, I am amazed that four inches of snow could bring major European capitals to a standstill.

I gathered some video, photos and news reports about the snowfall in Paris earlier this month. Are there any first-hand reports about winter weather in Paris?
http://tinyurl.com/37t2nzl


Julie
ww.juliesparis.wordpress.com

We had LOTS of snow this morning in Paris, most of which has now completely melted as usual.

Kerouac, were the reports I read about last week's snow catastrophe accurate or overblown? It's hard to know if incidents cited in the news were typical or chosen for newsworthiness.

There was no snow "catastrophe." The media loves to hype the problems. The traffic jams only reached about 15% of the level of similar snow last year.

The only newsworthiness of the subject is the fact that it almost nevers snows in December in most of France, except in the mountains and perhaps in Alsace.

Four inches? Good lord that's not even an excuse for being 10 minutes late to work.

Julie,
have you ever been down south? People who don't get a lot of snow always panic over what us east coast folks think is a trival amount. You should see what happens in Charleston, SC when a few flakes fall.

Washington, DC, was practically paralyzed over the 2 inches we had last week. It took my SO more than 4 hours to drive to BWI airport and back to fetch his daughter. Just ridiculous!

Just had a light covering of snow today in Boston...first of the year. Am reading about many places in U. S. and abroad really facing problems. Lucky us!
Bill in Boston

Champs Elysées when I went to work this morning:

http://i450.photobucket.com/albums/q...life/001-7.jpg

It's all gone now, of course. Might snow again on Thursday.

I'm on pins and needles awaiting our Paris flight this week and hoping the snow doesn't fall until Thursday <i>afternoon</i>!

I'm glad to hear it's overblown as usual. AA is offering free cancellation and change of itinerary if the dates fall within the next few weeks due to the snowy weather conditions.

I really enjoyed the snow in paris. I also went out to take a lot of photos, which you can find here. http://bit.ly/expBiC

enjoy!

Terrific photos! Thank you for the link.

thanks, I am happy you like them.

And the Paris snow stories continue - part of CDG Airport were evacuated from fear of snow on the roof?!

Kerouac did you get more snow yesterday as predicted? I like your pic of the Champs Elysees. ParisByPhoto - great pictures! Makes me wonder whether a)I wish I were visiting Paris in the snow, or B) What a relief I'm not stuck in Paris in the snow. Beachgirl, did you make it to Paris?

NYtraveler, Eliza, Bill and StCirq, I also see reports about major US cities that can't cope with the winter weather. Were I live, we are an inch away from the snowiest December in history.

Thanks Paris residents and visitors for giving us "on the spot" reporting. Keep us posted.

Hi Julie7963,

Well, my brother, sister and their 2 kids just arrived in Paris from the UK (at 8 this morning). They drove! No issues on the UK side, however they did have to wait 3 hours at the Eurotunnel.

They told me the motorways on the way to Paris were a bit dangerous, though they are being kept just about clear enough to drive safely. The only time they had a real scare was at a service station with too much snow/ice. In total though they arrived about 6 hours late with the Eurotunnel delays and reduced driving speed on either side of the channel.

Not bad considering!

Glad you liked the photos. I have to admit I have my fingers crossed that we will have a lot more snow, as I would love a white Christmas and the opportunity to take some more photos

Merry Christmas.

Julie, it snowed more than 24 hours nonstop, but very lightly, so as good as nothing in a city.

It is not snowing tonight (yet). Snow is on the ground in untouched areas, and that is already better than usual for a Christmas eve.

Although I do not live in Greece, I stayed there with long-time friends who are native Athenians. They are the ones who told me that they and their friends were quietly withdrawing money from their banks. They also told me that "Whatever happens, happens," and did not seem overly stressed or worried. These are not locals in the tourist industry.

I guess not everyone reacts in the same way. I am very worried about the Greek people, especially the elderly.