Yes, it does snow in Greece! A lot. Even though the Greek Tourist Organization formerly would have l

Yes, it does snow in Greece! A lot. Even though the Greek Tourist Organization formerly would have liked you to believe that Greece is a tropical paradise, our weather is “Balkan” – we are, after all, crossed by the 40˚N latitude (further north than San Francisco) and mountainous in the extreme. I have had visits from scientists (from Japan and Britain among other places) who somehow expect to do active field work in the midst of winter. Right. And this photo shows why geoscientists take a deep breath and enjoy sitting next to the fireplace during the Greek winter and writing posts for The Earth Story: this is a photo of my favorite mountain, Mount Vourinos, one of the world’s best exposed ophiolite complexes (http://tinyurl.com/pu78392), that is, it’s a slice of the earth’s lithosphere taken from a Jurassic ocean and emplaced onto the continent where we can see it and study it – at least when it’s not mantled by snow. Speaking of “mantling,” the view in this stunning photo is part of the Earth’s mantle itself, born in the hellish conditions of temperature and pressures where its rocks can slowly flow like currents in solid stone. It’s always amazing to see the Earth’s mantle exposed on the surface of the Earth, even more so to see it covered by deep snow. Now, pass the wine from Santorini, help yourself to a Christmas μελομακάρονα (as sweet to die for), and have a very merry holiday! Καλά Χριστούγεννα! Annie R Photo by Anna Batsi See some real Greek winter tourism https://www.facebook.com/visitgreecegr -- source link

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