Yeah , it's just WEATHER
Right ... weather
Does something look extremely odd here ? Take a good look at the picture below . Then read some news items :
http://english.alarabiya.net/en/life-style/2013/12/29/A-white-winter-for-the-Middle-East.html
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Snow blankets the desert in the Middle Easts white winter
This winter season, the Middle East faced unusual weather conditions as the worst storm witnessed in decades swept the region in December.
Snowstorm Alexa began on Dec. 11, dropping temperatures to below freezing in the eastern Mediterranean and causing mayhem across the region.
Temperatures have dropped so much that in some parts of the region they have been below the average for this time of the year by more than 10 degrees, Ali Darwish, an environmental expert and president of the Greenline Association in Lebanon, told Al Arabiya News.
It is rare to see snow in areas in the south, like Egypt and Palestine, Darwish said, Saudi Arabia was a big surprise as well. Temperatures there dropped below zero degrees Celsius and snow fell, ironically blanketing the desert.
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Don't trust an Arabic news site ? Here's a a startling picture from slide show from a UK source :
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/picturegalleries/worldnews/9793865/Snow-blankets-parts-of-Israel-Syria-and-the-Middle-East.html?frame=2448489
And another slide show from the LA Times :
http://www.latimes.com/la-wn-snow-middle-east-pictures,0,4657856.photogallery#axzz2p1gZ4uY8
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Here's a writeup from another American source :
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/12/14/middle-east-jerusalem-winter-storm-snow/4023627/
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What is being called the worst winter storm in decades is bringing both jubilation and misery to a wide swath of the Middle East.
The four-day storm, dubbed Alexa, began to wind down Saturday, but not before spreading snow across the hilly regions of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Northern Syria, Iran, Turkey, Egypt and the Palestinian territories
In Israel, where four died of storm-related injuries, the government set up crisis centers to deal with the "historic" storm, which paralyzed much of the country. Throughout the Middle East, hundreds have been injured.
Up to 20 inches of snow fell in Jerusalem, where 20,000 remain without power. Highways in and out of the city were impassable, trapping thousands of commuters.
The government called in the army to rescue hundreds of motorists stranded Thursday night on a mountainous stretch of the Jerusalem-Tel Aviv Highway. In southern Israel, a group of children were hospitalized after their mini-bus became stuck in a flash flood.
In Gaza, the Hamas-led government declared a state of emergency due to severe flooding and widespread power outages. More than 2,000 people evacuated from their homes were being housed in shelters Saturday, according to Gaza Health Ministry. About 100 people were injured in Gaza due to the storm, and strong winds tore off the tin roofs of concrete-block homes in refugee camps, according to the Maan News Agency.
In Lebanon and Jordan, international relief workers intensified their efforts to help more than 2 million Syrian refugees, many of them shivering in tents and makeshift dwellings in refugee camps. Strong winds and snow toppled tents and battered makeshift shelters.
In Syria, a one-year-old baby with breathing problems died from the cold in Homs province, Syrian activists told reporters.
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And from the Wall Street Journal :
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304858104579260520221685940
Snow Blankets Middle East
Worst Winter Storm in Decades Snarls Public Services, Sparks Unlikely Coordination
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Three feet of snow in Jerusalem left the city in a siege-like state over the weekend, with roads blocked, residents confined to their homes and Israeli troops in the streets, as the worst winter storm in decades swept through the Middle East.
The storm overwhelmed public emergency services, spurring mayhem and giddiness as a region accustomed to oppressive heat found itself agape at images of camels and iconic landmarks blanketed in white.
The weather prompted rare moments of coordination between sworn enemies, as Israel eased its restrictions on the Gaza Strip to send fuel and water pumps to flooded neighborhoods where thousands of people had been left homeless.
The United Nations on Sunday said it began airlifting food, blankets and medical supplies to northeast Syria from Iraq, to help hundreds of thousands affected by the civil war there. Snow covered most of Syria, including the capital Damascus.
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It is currently a cool 60 deg where I am which is a little warm compared to the usual .
Have you ever seen snow accumulate on Palm trees before ? I've been around awhile but I have never seen such a thing . And that includes pictures of such an event ...
Since when does Canada have palm trees !? BTW , did you notice this tidbit :
The weather prompted rare moments of coordination between sworn enemies, as Israel eased its restrictions on the Gaza Strip to send fuel and water pumps to flooded neighborhoods where thousands of people had been left homeless.
Victoria Harbour, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Victoria's famous Empress Hotel is in the background. What's that in the foreground?
Up where I live in WI, it was 10 below zero yesterday but that's not unusual.
OK , so where's the snow covering them ? BTW did you delete your above comment ?
Not surprising for WI . But brrrr that's cccccold ! Have you ever seen snow on palm trees B4 ?
The comment just above yours with the photo of the harbour was originally put in the wrong spot, which is what I deleted in order to put it here in the right spot.
I don't have photos of them covered with snow, but it HAS snowed there from time to time and I'm sure the snowflakes didn't aim themselves to miss the palm trees.
No but I will be in San Diego coming up soon.
An hour on the ground is a minor inconvenience . This was several days worth ... in the Sahara !
BTW it was 100 years since they had snow in Cairo . This was a freakish odd event . If it happens again soon then ... global cooling ?
28 below zero last night here in northern Minnesota. Our sub-zero weather started earlier than usuall this season and is more brutal than average. I wish I could hibernate.
Bbbrrrrrrr.....
OK , a few flurries on occasion ... You call that comparable to a major snow storm in the Sahara ?
Enjoy your New Years ...
Yikes ! Thas reeeeeally cold !
If you really want to hibernate , there is nothing like having your own pyramid :
Oops ... Snow there too !
That was just mean spirited ... you bastid !
Palm Trees Care - Climate Zone Maps for Successfully Growing and Caring for Cold Hardy Palm Trees
Thanks for the map ... very informative .
Unfortunately Vancouver is not on that zone map . It looks like it might be zone 8 ... which means no Royal Palm Trees there ...
Looking at the map, I agree that Vancouver/Victoria B.C. appears to be in zone 8. That is the only place in Canada where palm trees can grow.
Buzz ,
Can you watch videos on yahoo ? If so you might enjoy this :
Amazing (isn't that one of the words for the dumpster?) that I was able to open and watch it - usually I can't open photos and videos on Yahoo - Yahoo has problems here in China.
I don't know how anyone can hate tomatoes, grapefruit and pineapple. I like anchovies on pizza but I'm sure it's a pain to eat them by themselves, and although I love using mayo on lots of things, like mashed potatoes, egg salad and tuna salad, I know eating it by itself can be awful.