In Pictures: Snow and Twinkle Lights Illuminate Greece

Paulina Björk Kapsalis | December 23rd, 2021

Portaria, Pilio

© Instagram: @smaragdailiadi

Greece is looking handsome this holiday season. Here are photos we love from around the country.

Instagrammers have plenty to point their lenses at this holiday season. While stricter Covid-19 measures loom, Christmas is already all around. From the islands to the mountains, from north to south and from city to village, Greece has been decked out in its holiday best – sometimes with nature’s help, and sometimes with thousands and thousands of sparkling lights.

Here are some of our favorite shots from around Greece that caught our eye on Instagram this festive season:

Winter Wonderlands

Temperatures dropped below zero this month, and the mountainous areas of Greece were blanketed in a thick layer of snow. While many days since have been sunny, the freezing conditions have prevailed, making trees sparkle and slopes shine. Photos from the Zagorohoria, Nymfaio, Metsovo and Pilio filled our feed and made us anxious to pack our bags and head to our beloved mountain villages for the holidays. Send us a thought while we’re there, and hope we don’t get snowed in.

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A post shared by Stavroula Stamoulakatou (@stavr_stam)

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A post shared by Argiris (@argiris_karamouzas)

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A post shared by Αγνή Τσουλιάη? (@agnes_tsl_)

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A post shared by ARCTUROS (@arcturos)

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A post shared by Georgia P. (@georgia.lia)

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A post shared by @smaragdailiadi

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A post shared by Kafetsis A. Fotis ?? (@kafetsis.a.fotis)

City Lights

Last winter, we saw the Acropolis of Athens covered in white after snowstorm Medusa swept across the country. But such sights are rare, and while we dream about those snow-covered hills and sparkling icicle curtains hanging off the roofs in the mountain villages, the cities do what they can to bring holiday cheer to their streets without nature’s help. In Athens and Thessaloniki, the municipalities were generous with the decorations this year, in ambitious attempts to bring festive mood to city dwellers who spent last Christmas mostly indoors, with strict Covid-19 restrictions.

A new trend has also emerged; light shows, some big productions and others simple, can be seen in city squares and parks (check out the one at Aristotelous square in Thessaloniki, and those at the new Experience Park at Elliniko, and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens).