It was a Valentine's Miracle

I am a believer in global warming. I think it is a real phenomenom and we will only understand and appreciate its truth in coming decades. However, even the most ardent of Al Gore fans would have had a run for their money yesterday in Bella Roma...
As our school week ended and we approached the much-anticipated settimana bianca (white week), when the city empties as people go skiing, Rome faced its own mini-catastrophe. Snow. Accumulating snow. As I understand, it has been 25 years since it snowed here. That means that all of the students at school had never seen snow in their town, and some international kids had never seen snow at all. It was mayhem!!!
Those of you who have trod the cobbled streets of Rome know that you must be extremely careful when crossing streets, lest you get smacked by a typical Roman driver. Not known for their safety, their law abiding nature, hesitancy to use their horn, or their cautiousness, Roman drivers are more known for their.......efficiency, lets call it. This means that they will even cut off old ladies crossing the street with a shopping bag in order to get to the light first. It means they will line up 6 deep in a three lane intersection. It means that a family of four, their dog, and their new plasma TV will pile on to a motorino (scooter, or Vespa) to get places faster. All while talking on their mobile phone and smoking a cigarette-yes, even the operators of the motorini. Driving in Rome is not for the faint of heart.
That's why school let out early. As poor as the drivers are here, at least they know it. Or at least they know that others are poor drivers (it could never be them, you know). So school released at 1:00 instead of 3:30. The snow had all melted by 2:30 or so.
But when in Rome...