Snowball update....

This morning when I got up, there was more heavy snow falling. My little car has completely disappeared beneath the snow. It will take some serious effort to free it from it's wintry blanket.

I am thinking a few young men with shovels will get the job.

For now, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow...

How much snow...?

The last few weeks, Malishevë and Kosova have been in the grips of a major, "no end in sight" winter storm. Temperatures were bitter cold...with highs in the teens, with stiff winds pushing the wind chill factor well below zero. Many of the shop owners have been constantly shoveling, sweeping, raking, and hoeing the snow off of the sidewalks in front of their stores. At times, when there is a break in the weather, they will move the mountain of snow to an empty field, one wheelbarrow at a time.

Yesterday there was heavy snow for most of the day. Underneath the deep snow was a layer of ice from the previous storm. If you didn't have chains on your car...you didn't go anywhere, period.

Today is the first day in nearly 2 weeks that the actual pavement is visible on the roads.

I don't know how much snow Malishevë received in total...probably close to 3 feet. One city about an hour from here, Gjakova, it is reported they had 2 meters of snow, and Pejë had 3 meters. (6.5' and 9.11' respectively) These cities are near the Rugova mountains.

The forecast calls for 7 more inches of snow tonight and tomorrow.

All of this snow is great for the agricultural area of Kosova. The only thing is, when all this snow melts...

MUD...!

Tidy little snowball...

The Balkans, the area of Eastern Europe where Kosova is located, have been pounded with unending snow storms and frigid weather. After the first major snow storm when my car was freed from the field behind my apartment, it has been parked on the street. The shop owners across the street from my apartment, and the brother of my landlord have been helping me the last 2 weeks to clean my car off.

I went out today with a broom to tackle the "snowball". The handle of the broom snapped before I even got started. The owner of the market across the street jokingly told me that it will take a month to dig my car out.

These photos show how much snow we had the last 6 days...

It is a good thing that whatever I need in Malishevë is still within walking distance.