White Christmas

[Giantfan13]

By watching the news I see London and many other cities in Europe are having a major snow storm and will be having a White Christmas.

Many of us, who post here, have become on line friends, and we have a good part of the world covered as to where people are located.

I was just wondering if any or all will be enjoying a White Christmas, and how the weather is where you are. I post on a football message board and we always try to do this to see how 'the other guy' is either better off, or missing out on the weather.

I live right outside of NYC and there will be NO White Christmas here. It is cold, and has been for the entire month, but no snow yet and none is forcasted for the remainder of the year.

How's the weather where you are????????????

 

And while I'm at it, everyone, have a very merry Holdiday, however you chose to celebrate it.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[as19111]

How's the weather where you are????????????

 

And while I'm at it, everyone, have a very merry Holdiday, however you chose to celebrate it.

 

Cheers

 

Len

 

The sun is shining brightly on our Eagles!:D

 

Did I say that?:eek:

 

Happy Holidays to you also, Len.

[CintiPam]

Definitely forecast to be a White Christmas in Cincinnati this year. We got three inches of snow Sunday a week ago, then five inches more on Thursday, and more is supposed to come on Christmas Eve.

 

It has been unseasonably cold the past few weeks, so it has been more than a week of white-covered ground so far. Normally we average about 42 this time of year, with only a few weeks below freezing the entire winter.

 

Loved the last seven minutes of the Eagles/Giants game today. (Husband was born in Philly and grew up in Lancaster, PA.) With the Bungles blacked out again today here (we gave up our season tickets one season ago after 10 years of frustration), we have started enjoying the Vick/DeSean show.

 

Happy Holidays to my fellow cruisers.

[Ultima Thule]

Helsinki is right now the place of Finland with most snow. The official number is just under 70 cm = 27 inches, the highest December number since 1915.

[Cornishpastyman1]

Hello Len, Terry, Pam and all the other CCers who've given so much good info (and a few laughs) in recent months. The UK is having a miserable time with snow but here in St Ives, Cornwall there is not a single flake. I'm 50 tomorrow and have never seen proper snow here but we were more or less promised it by the forecasters and then .........nothing.

 

I'd love to make a film of St Ives in the Snow but it looks unlikely now for this year at least. And then I see those pictures of folk wrapped in tin-foil, sleeping on the floors of Heathrow Airport, starved of information and not knowing when they will get anywhere, and at this time of year above all, and I realise how lucky I am.

 

Merry Christmas to you all, may your 2011 cruises be all that you hope for, but most importantly of all I hope your health lasts well beyond that and we all have many more years of great travel experiences ahead.

Tony

[Al_Frescoe]

Snow, snow and more snow here in Stockholm.

 

Happy Holidays to you all.

 

Al

[TLCOhio]

Hello Len, Terry, Pam and all the other CCers who've given so much good info (and a few laughs) in recent months. The UK is having a miserable time with snow but here in St Ives, Cornwall there is not a single flake. I'm 50 tomorrow and have never seen proper snow here but we were more or less promised it by the forecasters and then .........nothing. I'd love to make a film of St Ives in the Snow but it looks unlikely now for this year at least. And then I see those pictures of folk wrapped in tin-foil, sleeping on the floors of Heathrow Airport, starved of information and not knowing when they will get anywhere, and at this time of year above all, and I realise how lucky I am. Merry Christmas to you all, may your 2011 cruises be all that you hope for, but most importantly of all I hope your health lasts well beyond that and we all have many more years of great travel experiences ahead. Tony

 

Al_Frescoe: Snow' date=' snow and more snow here in Stockholm [/quote']

 

THANKS to Tony and others for the comments and update! Merry Christmas to you and all others. Appreciate the snow details from Helsinki, Stockholm, etc. And, it is not even, yet, officially winter! Where is Al Gore and Global Warming when we might need it now??!!

 

YES, that Europe weather is something unique!!! We have friends who are now stationed in Copenhagen for the World Health Organization. They are trying to get from there to hook up with family who are vacationing in Kenya. From the Wall Street Journal within the past hour, they have this headline: "Weather Hits Northern Europe Transport Networks" with these highlights: "Snow, ice and freezing cold weather was hitting road, rail and air networks across northern Europe for a third consecutive day Monday, leaving hundreds of thousands of travelers stranded, retailers facing lower sales and airlines and airports facing a big bill for the disruption. The U.K., France, Germany and the Netherlands are among the worst hit by the freezing weather, which is set to continue right up until Christmas, according to forecasters. Paris, where snow was still falling Monday morning, was one of the worst hit cities. Airport operator Aeroports de Paris said no flights would land in Paris Monday morning. Only one long-haul flight runway was in operation at Roissy it said."

 

They noted this for Heathrow: "London's Heathrow, the world's busiest international hub airport, was open Monday, but was operating a limited schedule as airlines struggled to move aircraft and crew back to their normal positions, airport operator BAA Airports Ltd. said."

 

The more you read, the worse it seems. We are just driving down to Charlottesville, Virginia, to see our first grandchild, now almost three month old. FUN!!! It is is a White Christmas here in Ohio and will be that way down there in Virgina. Lots of snow, all over the world!!!

 

Full stories at:

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20101220-704035.html

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/its-not-just-the-uk-ndash-the-continent-is-suffering-too-2164828.html

 

Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now at 26,850 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[Danish viking]

There is a good chance that Denmark will have a white christmas for the second year in a row and that will be the first time in recorded history.

 

But we do not have any catastrophic amounts of snow.

[Travelanni]

Hi Everyone,

Here in Rostock/Warnemünde we do have snow but not enough to cause trouble. But boy - has it been cold, especially for an Aussie. The forecast is 70% chance of a White Christmas.

Merry Christmas and a Happy, Healthy and Safe New Year to all.

Look forward to seeing the Baltic Cruisers in 2011.

Anni (aussieinrostock@gmail.com)

[Bet & Peg]

Hi Len ~ Thanks for starting this thread!!! A great way to "touch base" for the holidays!! And to say a real Thank You, Tack så mycket,

Kiitos, Tak, Danke for all the fabulous advice we've all benefited from for our trips!

I hope (and pray) you're correct about NYC not seeing a White Christmas (we'll be traveling to NJ to celebrate with our son, the hated Dallas fan!). The report I heard this morning said "possibility" (hate that word!) of snow Friday evening - hope they're wrong!!!!!!!!

To all in Europe ~ stay warm and safe!! You're getting hit bad in some places! DH and I spent last New Years in London - snowy but not too cold! It was magical!!!! This year we'll be in Washington, DC for Dec. 31st!

Anni ~ you remembered us - you made my day when I read that!!! You're someone I mention so often when encouraging others to travel and experience and enjoy!!!! (And sorry about getting mixed up about the tourist services!)

Len ~ so happy to see you posted such a cheery note Sunday evening - glad the last few minutes of the game didn't destroy you! I was afraid DH would go through the TV!!! But next week.........

Merry Christmas, God Jul, Hyvaa Joulua, Glædelig Jul, Fröhliche Weihnachten to all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Master Tom]

This will be the second year in a row there will be a white Christmas in Bergen :)

I will head for Oslo tomorrow with the night train and celebrate Christmas and new year there with family and friends.

The most comfortable way to travel between Bergen - Oslo and still have all the luggage in one piece :D

 

At the end of the year I can leave my Flickr photostream of this years cruise stalk from Bergen & Oslo ;)

See if you can find your cruise

 

Merry Christmas from Bergen

[Giantfan13]

Thanks for the great photo AnnMary. I was wondering how St Petersburg looked in the winter.

 

Peg

 

I have been thru a lot of tough losses, but this one just really hurts

 

and to all you Eagles fans

 

AAAAAAARRRRRRRRRHHHHHHHHHH

 

Not so Cheery today

 

Len

[TLCOhio]

Good topic - Merry Christmas to everyone! I have a little present for you. Here is Russian Christmas - this is the St.Petersburg that cruise pasangers never see;) !

 

Agree with Len in appreciating Ann Mary's winter picture in St. Petersburg. Would like to see that great city in winter. BUT, for tomorrow, the downside is that their length of day will be only five hours and 53 minutes. Sunrise at 10:00 AM and sunset at 3:53 PM. Those long nights in the winter are a "downer".

 

Per WeatherUnderground for Tuesday, there will be a high of 17° F and a low of 10° F. Tomorrow it will be a chance of snow, 20% chance of precipitation.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 26,850 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[Bet & Peg]

My daughter is married to a fabulous Swedish fellow and has been to Sweden a few times in the winter. She says that outside its usually dark & gloomy and that she was always hungry - thinking it was night! But, on the other hand, the snow can also make it magical!

 

I would love to retrace our path in St. Petersburg to see it in winter - but only in a VERY warm car/van!!!

 

AnnMary - also a Thank You for the photo!

 

Len ~ you sound just like my DH!!! After a difficult loss (like yesterday) he always says "the sun will come up tomorrow" - but I'm not sure we had a sunrise today!!! Sorry Eagles fans - some of us are suffering!!

[TLCOhio]

From the Reuters newswire within the past hour, they have this headline: "Europe weather ruins Christmas for airlines, retailers" with these highlights: "Snow and freezing temperatures grounded flights across northern Europe on Tuesday, while retailers fretted they would struggle to make up sales lost due to bad weather with just four shopping days to Christmas. Eurocontrol, the umbrella group for air-traffic control across 38 countries, said more services would likely operate on Tuesday after more than 22,000 flights across Europe were cancelled on Monday. But cancellations remained widespread. British Airways said it expected to make a 'significant number of cancellations' to its shorthaul services from London's Heathrow airport."

 

An AFP story noted: "London Heathrow, where passengers have been forced to sleep on terminal floors during four days of chaos, cancelled two thirds of flights while long queues snaked outside St Pancras station for the Eurostar train link to France and Belgium."

 

The below German story noted: "Fresh snowfall overnight caused further setbacks at Frankfurt Airport, with no planes taking off or landing on Tuesday morning. Around 130 departures, and a further 130 arrivals, were canceled at Germany's biggest air terminal."

 

The snow can be pretty, but it is clearly making a mess for travelers in Europe. Good news that few are going to cruises in northern Europe right now. But, I remember the problems last spring and early summer on the Iceland volcano messing up air flights in Europe.

 

More details from these stories:

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLNE6BK02W20101221

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iaYXbhtrwed46ItqQUC579h91Siw?docId=CNG.96bb3f4a3c3cac2e28e7cb4d3e9018d9.791

http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,,6361453,00.html

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 26,900 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[MRSBITS]

By watching the news I see London and many other cities in Europe are having a major snow storm and will be having a White Christmas.

Many of us, who post here, have become on line friends, and we have a good part of the world covered as to where people are located.

I was just wondering if any or all will be enjoying a White Christmas, and how the weather is where you are. I post on a football message board and we always try to do this to see how 'the other guy' is either better off, or missing out on the weather.

I live right outside of NYC and there will be NO White Christmas here. It is cold, and has been for the entire month, but no snow yet and none is forcasted for the remainder of the year.

How's the weather where you are????????????

 

And while I'm at it, everyone, have a very merry Holdiday, however you chose to celebrate it.

 

Cheers

 

Len

Nice idea, Len. We live 20 miles south of Boston, and the snowfall we had yesterday was not predicted (except for Cape Cod and the islands)! It did make for a terrible evening commute; however, it will give us a White Christmas and more realistic for Santa's sleigh.

BTW, Len, we thoroughly enjoy your input on the Baltic cruising experience. We will be there on the Eclipse in May, 2011. Needless to say, we are Patriots' fans! Carolyn

[kaisatsu]

I'm very lucky that my flight home this morning was the direct flight to Oslo! If I'd booked a connecting flight, I would probably be stranded! Luckily, Oslo is no stranger to snow, so I didn't have any issues (aside from an hour delay leaving Newark, while they tried to find and remove the luggage of a passenger that didn't show up for the flight).

 

Anyhow, we're looking at a quiet white Christmas here in Oslo!

 

This was my walk to the office a week ago:

[Giantfan13]

Nice idea, Len. We live 20 miles south of Boston, and the snowfall we had yesterday was not predicted (except for Cape Cod and the islands)! It did make for a terrible evening commute; however, it will give us a White Christmas and more realistic for Santa's sleigh.

BTW, Len, we thoroughly enjoy your input on the Baltic cruising experience. We will be there on the Eclipse in May, 2011. Needless to say, we are Patriots' fans! Carolyn

 

Thanks for the kind words Carolyn. glad myself and all the others can help. I've said so many times, I come ehre to try and help those as a return for those that helped us. It is always so scary to go to a foreign place and not know anything, having to depend on the ship's personnel to help you. We try and help the newer travelers so they have options and know waht to expect when they do get to the ports.

Please ask anything that you ahve concerns about. We will all try and help.

 

And if my Giants can't make it all the way, PLEASE don't let those Jets get there.;););););)

 

Cheers

 

Len

[TLCOhio]

And if my Giants can't make it all the way, PLEASE don't let those Jets get there. Cheers. Len

 

Come on, Len, cheer, also for the Jets. They are New York and have some good Ohio State players on their team.

 

The weather situation is still really bad in Europe. Hard to believe how "Global Warming" is being blamed by their officials for causing more snow in England before winter officially starts. Strange! I'm sure for Meg in Oslo, they are prepared for snow. Heathrow and Frankfurt seem to be hit the worst.

 

There have been lots of key news stories where the Heathrow management and others are getting "hell" for not be prepared. From the Wall Street Journal this morning, they have this headline: "EU Criticizes Airports As Snow Chaos Continues" with these highlights: "The European Commission on Tuesday criticized airport operators in Western Europe for being ill-prepared to cope with bad weather as snow, ice and freezing temperatures continued to hamper road, rail and air networks for a fourth day, threatening Christmas plans for millions of travelers. Amid growing criticism of how airports and other transport operators were handling the snow and ice, Siim Kallas, the commission's transport policy chief, said the European Union's executive arm may draft new rules if airport operators can't voluntarily take action to plan better for severe weather."

 

From the BBC, they noted: "Heathrow's operator BAA said that both runways were now open. It said it planned to run two-thirds of scheduled flights but warned: 'Airlines are currently operating a significantly reduced schedule while they move diverted aircraft and crew back into position.' British Airways said that in line with a directive from BAA, it would operate only a third of its normal flight schedule at Heathrow until 0600 GMT on Thursday, Reuters reports."

 

From the Daily Mail in London within the past few minutes, this headline: "Heathrow airport reopens second runway but passengers are warned to 'expect long delays' ". Gatwick is operating fine (with a different manager), but it is a total mess at Heathrow.

 

Full stories at:

http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20101221-707128.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12056762

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-1340752/Latest-travel-update-Heathrow-airport-reopens-second-runway.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 26,950 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[ch__]

Global warming and those who preach about it are funny because they think every weather is a proof of global warming. In Helsinki, Greenpeace organized a demonstration two years ago which had a slogan something like "reduce CO2 - give our snow back", since it was an almost snowless winter and they are really rare. Well now they have had lots of snow in Helsinki for two years in a row and for them it's as much proof of global warming as the lack of snow was a few years ago.

 

Climate cycles are really long - longer than we have been able to measure. We can't really build accurate models or make conclusions about things based on statistics which only tell a partial truth. Last summer was hot for Finland but the average temperature wasn't even in top 5 of the last 100 years. There have been really cold and hot time periods and they have nearly nothing to do with global warming.

 

Man has some effect on global warming but we don't really have the power to stop it because we don't even understand it. There are a lot of positive feedback loops associated with AGW which are not understood and more and more scientist are getting sceptic about those "official" IPCC figures.

 

In my opinion the right way to do things would be letting the economy decide when to switch to electric cars or when to build wind/solar power. That way we don't waste valuable resources to less effective means of production or don't have to pay subsidies to make wind/solar power economically viable. Currently many countries are restricting the building of nuclear power - one of the cheapest, safest and cleanest forms of energy production - just because we are afraid of radiation. At the same time we get massive amounts of radiation fallout from the sky when we burn coal/gas/petrol or any fossil fuels. The water from my backyard well contains much more radiation (more than 10x) than the cooling water from the secondary circuit of a nuclear power plant.

 

Global warming is brainwashing from the media and the politicians. Billions of dollars go from pocket to pocket in these circles and everyone wants a cut. I'm one of those many sceptics who would like to end this nonsense and make climate research scientific again. With scientific I mean that those scientist who don't agree and want to show contradicting studies don't lose their funding or job - let the SCIENCE decide, not the politics.

 

And yes, to get back on topic, we have a really white christmas. I don't remember ever having a non-white christmas in Finland. :D

[Ultima Thule]

There have been lots of key news stories where the Heathrow management and others are getting "hell" for not be prepared. From the Wall Street Journal this morning, they have this headline: "EU Criticizes Airports As Snow Chaos Continues" with these highlights: "The European Commission on Tuesday criticized airport operators in Western Europe for being ill-prepared to cope with bad weather as snow, ice and freezing temperatures continued to hamper road, rail and air networks for a fourth day, threatening Christmas plans for millions of travelers. Amid growing criticism of how airports and other transport operators were handling the snow and ice, Siim Kallas, the commission's transport policy chief, said the European Union's executive arm may draft new rules if airport operators can't voluntarily take action to plan better for severe weather."

 

See also BBC's article "How Helsinki airport deals with snow and ice".

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-12042213

 

"Helsinki airport had 188cm (6ft) of snow last winter but the last time it was forced to close because of the weather was in 2003.

That closure lasted for half an hour.

This winter planes have been taking off and landing as normal despite an unusually heavy snowfall in December - 65cm (more than two feet)."

[CintiPam]

There have been lots of key news stories where the Heathrow management and others are getting "hell" for not be prepared. ....

From the Daily Mail in London within the past few minutes, this headline: "Heathrow airport reopens second runway but passengers are warned to 'expect long delays' ". Gatwick is operating fine (with a different manager), but it is a total mess at Heathrow.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Well, I had read a lot about the very severe reductions in the Royal Navy, but apparently there also have been very severe reductions in snow and ice removal equipment at Heathrow.:)

[TLCOhio]

From this morning's New York Times, they have this headline: "Another Storm Brings Travel Delays in Europe" with these highlights: "Even as troubles at London’s delay-plagued Heathrow Airport began to clear up, a fresh storm and shortages of de-icing fluid brought new transport chaos to Europe on Friday, snarling traffic, slowing trains and delaying flights for thousands of Christmas Eve travelers. A section of Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport outside Paris was still a dormitory Friday after an estimated 2,000 passengers spent the night in the airport because their flights were canceled. The accumulation of stranded passengers grew on Friday at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle Airport, the major hub for Paris, where a lack of de-icing fluid compounded the delays as planes sat on the tarmac. About 2,000 people remained camped inside the airport from delays built up over the week. Airports in Ireland and Belgium also faced de-icing shortages, leading to cascading delays."

 

Agree with Pam and Ultima Thule that Heathrow and other airports have some serious questions to answer on their lack of equipment and preparation for snow. Lots of travelers have suffered BIG-TIME!!! Many details all over Europe in this Times story, plus the Reuters summary below.

 

Full stories at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/25/world/europe/25travel.html?hpw

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6BN1OF20101225

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For lots of interesting details, great visuals, etc., from our July 1-16 Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. Don’t be shy and feel free to ask any questions of interest. This posting is now over 27,185 views. Appreciate those who have “tuned in”.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[Giantfan13]

I live right outside of NYC and there will be NO White Christmas here. It is cold, and has been for the entire month, but no snow yet and none is forcasted for the remainder of the year

 

To quote myself.

 

and that goes to prove how much weathermen know. They are now forecasting 8-14 inches of snow Sunday afternoon thru Monday Morning.

 

Oy-Vey

 

Cheers and Merry Christmas

 

Len

[Travelanni]

 

and that goes to prove how much weathermen know. They are now forecasting 8-14 inches of snow Sunday afternoon thru Monday Morning.

 

 

Agree with you Len, the only sure way to know what the weather is doing is to look out the window. Here we have had a White Christmas, enough snow to be pretty but not enough to cause too much trouble. Just right.

By the way, when you are watching 'your team' spare a thought for a poor Aussie Rules fan far away from the only country in which the game is played. Even the results are only available on the internet and as for watching just a snippet of a game, forget it.

My thoughts with all of you who have to travel at this difficult time, all the best.

Anni.