Winters in the World: A Journey through the Anglo-Saxon Year

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There's a lovely circular walk you can take round the lake which gives you a great view of Bled Island and its pretty church tower. The persistently cold, wet weather caused great hardship, was primarily responsible for the Great Famine of 1315–1317, and strongly contributed to the weakened immunity and malnutrition leading up to the Black Death (1348–1350).

The mountain regions in the Pyrenees and the Alps, meanwhile, experience heavy snow and much colder temperatures. These dates are somewhat later than those used to define the beginning and end of the meteorological winter – usually considered to span the entirety of December, January, and February in the Northern Hemisphere and June, July, and August in the Southern. The festival is spread over two areas on either side of the Songhua River, from which giant blocks of ice are taken to be used as sculptures.Heavy and persistent precipitation contributed to almost constant snow cover in the Northeastern US which finally receded in early May. There is a depth of feeling and an admiration for the period that shines through the pages, encouraging the reader to be as fascinated by the Anglo-Saxons as the author is herself.

Eleanor Parker’s Winters in the World is a lyrical journey through the Anglo-Saxon year, witnessing the major festivals and the turning of the seasons through the eyes of the poets.Harbin is known as the coldest among China’s major cities and it has embraced its moniker of Ice City with gusto. To see Northern Lights in Finland head to Lapland as the long, dark winters make this eerily beautiful part of Europe an Aurora Borealis hotspot.