Some georgeous photography, today Paris under the snow.
The City of Love has become a scenic winter wonderland after seven inches of snow fell in Paris overnight.Iconic landmarks such as the Notre Dame and the Eiffel Tower are covered in snow, and the Disneyland Paris' famous castle is shifting from pink to white.British tourists visiting the French capital are likely to have to spend a few more hours in the city, as high-speed Eurostar services to London have been delayed or cancelled.However, while holidaying tourists may be pleased with the snow, for a majority of Parisians, the beautiful views will not make up for the traffic chaos it has brought.A Eurostar statement read: ‘Our apologies to passengers travelling today.Due to the adverse weather conditions in the UK and in France, speed restrictions are put in place.‘This means that your journey could be affected and that the arrival time of your train might be delayed.’ There were also early Eurostar cancellations, with the company offering compensation and help organising accommodation for stranded passengers.As a result of the extreme weather, large parts of France, including Paris, ground to a halt overnight.By 9am on Wednesday a record 460 miles of traffic jams were logged around Paris, with 1,500 lorries stacked up and at least 2,000 motorists stuck in their vehicles.All bus services stopped in Paris, along with many rail and Metro services, with reveal roads including the N118 motorway also shut.Concerns were also growing for hundreds of migrants sleeping rough in bivouacs and tens around the city.‘Emergency measures are being taken to look after everybody affected by the freezing weather, including those on the street,’ said a Paris council spokesman.‘These are exceptional conditions which have created all kinds of problems for everybody.’ Around 250 people spent the night at Orly, Paris’s second airport, and close to 800 commuters tried to put their heads down in Montparnasse and Austerlitz stations.A spokesman for France’s Interior Ministry said there were some 2500 emergency workers including ‘police, firefighters, and gendarmes’ trying ‘to get things back to normal as quickly as possible.’ A total of 25 departments – France’s equivalent of counties – remained on freezing weather alerts as more snow was forecast