Rome Blanketed in Snow

La dolce vita will have to be enjoyed indoors in Rome on Friday as the Eternal City digs out of a rare snowstorm that blanketed ruins and stranded travelers. Rome hasn’t seen a snowfall since 2005, and reports are that Pope Benedict was seen looking out Vatican windows at what’s said to be the heaviest snow in nearly 25 years. The Colosseum and other ancient sites were closed to tourists out of fear that visitors may slide down the ruins. It’s part of a cold snap that’s had Romans shivering in recent days, with temperatures resting around the freezing point. But it was a stroke of buona fortuna for Roman schoolchildren—the city’s mayor gave them two snow days.