Italy has had its share of disasters in the past few months beginning with the flooding in the Cinque Terre last fall, then the Costa Concordia cruise ship sinking, and now the biggest snowstorm in over two decades.
Rome and Vatican City have not seen since 1986 and since it is such an unusual occurrence everything comes to a halt. The Colosseum and the Roman forum were closed. Schools and government offices were ordered closed for Monday by the mayor of Rome. You know it is serious when even a soccer game was rescheduled.
Apparently by law the heat only comes on for 8 to 10 hours a day so the local people are having to bundle up inside their homes with tile and marble cold floors. The government issued shovels to the local residents to clear the snow.
In the northern sections of Italy near the Alps the temperatures were well below zero, many were without electricity and there have been some deaths due to this frigid weather. I guess there is a reason this is not considered to be tourist season in Italy and why airfares at this time of year are usually quite a bit lower than in the summer.
Hopefully some warmer temperatures will be in the forecast soon. In the meantime the photos and videos are beautiful.
margieinitaly 
Bagni di Lucca is covered with snow. I know it is a nuisance, but I hope there is some left when I get there on Thursday. I will certainly see plenty in Helsinki on the way.
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The evening news showed the very well dressed Italians with matching shovels (issued by the government) patiently shoveling snow. I guess the local politicians decided it was cheaper than buying a snowplow! It is so warm here that I have not had the heat or the fireplace going except for one night. Can’t imagine no heat for the better part of the day. My Florida self requires blue skies and sunny days.
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I have family near Rome, hope their ok
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