Florina

Florina

The kindling of the bonfire in this snowy northern Greek town is called Boubouna (Thundering). After the lighting of the bonfire many women collect embers and bring them home believing that these will bring them happiness.

Fiki

The reopening of a border crossing used by communist general Markos Vafiadis during Greece?s civil war and the restoration of a 19th century railway service are two of 11 confidence-building measures discussed between Greece and Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM), which remain estranged over a name dispute.

A 28-year-old Bulgarian and a 36-year-old Greek were arrested on sex-trafficking charges over the weekend, while another two suspects, a 43-year-old foreign national and a 32-year-old Greek, were identified and being sought by police in the same case.

Panos Karvounis, the Head of the Greek Representation of the European Commission said that Greek celebrations of Europe Day on May 9 will take place at Messolonghi, western Greece, however there will also be other events at several Greek cities at different dates.

Municipal authorities in Athens, Piraeus, Thessaloniki and other cities around Greece on Monday night opened dozens of emergency shelters as temperatures across the country slid into the single digits, with forecasts expecting the cold snap to persist through Thursday.

Authorities in Western Macedonia issued a warning on Tuesday about high smog levels in the region caused by the large number of households using fireplaces to keep warm.

According to regional authorities, atmospheric pollution in the municipalities of Kozani, Eordaia, Amyntaio and Florina have risen above the warning level.

Dozens of schools around the Greek capital did not open for the first day back after the Christmas break on Thursday due to the cold weather than has lashed the country for the past two weeks.

Defense Minister Nikos Dendias has ordered the armed forces to be on standby as a new wave of bad weather hits Greece.

The Civil Protection Authority in central and northern Greece is also on standby for potential problems caused by the cold weather and strong winds expected in many parts of the country.

While strong, icy winds and snowstorms abated in most parts of the country on Friday, giving way to sunny skies, temperatures remained at unusually low levels and are expected to plummet further as of Sunday night, meteorologists have warned.

Heavy snowfall and icy conditions in many parts of Greece have resulted in several roads being closed to traffic in the north, as well as in mountainous regions in central Greece and near the capital, Athens.