La mesa de luz

WP01.AMSTERDAM (HOLANDA).10/2/2012.-Fotografí­a tomada por el fotógrafo español Samuel Aranda que ha sido galardonada con el World Press Photo of the Year 2011. Aranda ha sido proclamado hoy viernes 10 de febrero de 2012 vencedor del World Press Photo, el más importante certamen mundial de fotoperiodismo, por la imagen de un herido en las revueltas de Yemen que es abrazado por una mujer con velo.La instantánea ha sido elegida entre más de 100.000 imágenes realizadas por un total de 5.247 fotógrafos provenientes de 124 países de todo en mundo. En la fotografí­a, con una composición que recuerda a la escultura “La Piedad” de Miguel Ángel, contrasta el negro del “niqab” (un velo islámico que cubre todo el rostro a excepción de los ojos) con el cuerpo desnudo del joven herido que está en los brazos de la mujer. EFE/SAMUEL ARANDA/ THE NEW YORK TIMES ***ESTA FOTOGRAFÍA SOLO PUEDE SER UTILIZADA EN EL CONTEXTO DE LA CONCESIÓN DEL PREMIO WORLD PRESS PHOTO. SOLO USO EDITORIAL. PROHIBIDA SU VENTA Y SU ARCHIVO***

Hoy se han dado a conocer los World Press Photo, los máximos galardones mundiales del periodismo gráfico. El fotoperiodismo español está de enhorabuena ya que el compañero Samuel Aranda ha sido galardonado con el premio a la foto del año 2011. Varios fotógrafos españoles han sido reconocidos por los WPP en ediciones anteriores en las diferentes categorías. Pero esta es la segunda vez desde que se empezaron a dar estos premios en 1955, en que un español recibe el de la fotografía del año. El otro español que recibió el mismo premio hace exactamente 30 años, fue Manuel Pérez Barriopedro por la imagen de Tejero en la tribuna del Congreso durante el golpe de estado del 23-F. Manuel estuvo en La Mesa de Luz el pasado 23 de febrero descubriendo “Cómo se hizo la foto de Tejero” y hoy se mostraba muy contento de que “se reconozca al fotoperiodismo español con un premio de tan alto nivel.”

Samuel Aranda, hoy premiado con el WPP por esta imagen de la Piedad de Miguel Ángel reencontrada en la primavera árabe, ha tenido la amabilidad de hablar con La Mesa de Luz y contarnos un poco de su historia y de la historia de esta fotografía.

Samuel Aranda con su portatil en la terraza de su casa en Túnez.

Samuel Aranda cumple el próximo mayo 33 años y ha recorrido mucho camino hasta llegar a la foto de Yemen que ha recibido hoy el premio. Comenzó en un periódico local hasta que le dieron una oportunidad en el diario 20 Minutos. En los últimos años colaboró principalmente con El País y El Periódico de Catalunya. También ha trabajado para la agencia Afp y ha publicado su trabajo en The New York Times, Le Monde, Newsweek, Stern y Geo, entre otros. Hoy habla con nosotros desde la terraza de su casa en Túnez, lugar donde reside desde hace un año. El premio no parece haberle cambiado mucho la vida, aunque si se muestra abrumado por las llamadas telefónicas. “Ahora estoy donde siempre. Cuando me llamaron por teléfono para decirme que me habían dado el World Press Photo, estaba mirando en internet mi cuenta del banco para ver cómo pagaba el alquiler de este mes”, nos cuenta Samuel.

No es casualidad que la foto que ha lanzado a Samuel a lo más alto del periodismo mundial sea una imagen tomada en un país árabe. “Llevo trabajando intensamente en los países árabes desde hace 10 o 12 años. Mi primer destino internacional cuando tenía 19 años fue Gaza. Siempre me sentido muy a gusto en el mundo árabe, de cómo es la cultura y de la gente de aquí. Cuando empezó la revuelta en Túnez cogí un vuelo sin tener encargo, sin nada. Empecé a cubrirlo, luego fui a Egipto, Libia y Yemen”, dice el fotógrafo.

El trabajo en un país como Yemen es tarea difícil y en la mesa de fotografía del diario Público siempre andamos cortos de fotos de este país. Es incluso difícil entrar si eres periodista, al parecer Samuel se hizo pasar por estudiante: “Conseguimos un visado por la puerta de atrás, con la ayuda del diario The New York Times.” Samuel considera clave y da especial importancia a la manera de trabajar del periódico americano: “Apostaron por mi desde el principio y me dieron libertad total de movimientos. Me siento muy contento de encontrar como cliente a un diario que apuesta por tener fotos propias y tener gente en el terreno.”

El New York Times sigue apostando por fotógrafos específicos sobre el terreno para que les suministre material gráfico exclusivo. Un sistema que tiende a desaparecer en la prensa mundial pero que da como fruto una información diferenciada del resto de cabeceras que se suelen nutrir de las mismas agencias de noticias.

Samuel Aranda junto a Lindsay Mackenzie vistos en el retrovisor de un coche en El Cairo.

¿Cómo se hizo la foto?
Al escuchar el relato de cómo llegó Samuel a hacer esta imagen, no puedo dejar de imaginármelo por las calles de Saná disfrazado de yemení. “Creo que era el primer día que salía a hacer fotos. Como no tenía permiso para trabajar, me tenía que mover con mucho cuidado por la ciudad. Contacté con un tipo que tenía una moto y me movía con él vestido como los locales llevando una cámara pequeña. Una D700 con un 35mm fijo. La foto la hice en una mezquita que utilizaban como hospital para los manifestantes heridos por los francotiradores. Sobre el terreno, la gente en Yemen se portaba muy bien y era muy fácil trabajar con ellos. La parte difícil era el ejército y la policía.”

Samuel parece mantener los pies en la tierra a pesar del galardón y, antes de despedirnos, hace una reflexión sobre la profesión y el WPP. “Este mundo del fotoperiodismo suele ser un poco egocentrista, está muy bien recibir un premio como el World Press Photo y lo agradezco muchísimo, pero lo importante de nuestro trabajo, lo importante de esta foto, no soy yo como fotógrafo, es esta mujer y lo que pasa en Yemen. Este es un oficio que se basa en documentar lo que vemos y poco más, no tiene muchos secretos, no soy ningún artista. La mayoría de los fotógrafos que conocemos podrían haber hecho esta foto.” Pero fue Samuel Aranda fue quién la hizo esa foto. ¡Mi enhorabuena!

Aquí os dejo una selección del resto de fotografías premiadas en estos World Press Photo de 2012.

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 2nd prize Spot News Stories of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Niclas Hammerstrom, Sweden, for Aftonbladet in Utoya, Norway, July 22, 2011. Anders Behring Breivik killed 69 people on 22 July on the small island of Utoya outside Oslo in Norway. (AP Photo/Niclas Hammerstrom/ Aftonbladet )

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 2nd prize General News Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Paolo Pellegrin, Italy, Magnum Photos for Zeit Magazin shows the tsunami aftermath, in Japan, April 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Paolo Pellegrin, Magnum Photos for Zeit Magazin)

AM01.AMSTERDAM (HOLANDA).10/2/2012.- Fotografí­a tomada por el fotógrafo francés Vincent Boisot de Riva Press para Le Figaro Magazine, que ha sido galardonada en la categorí­a individual de Artes y Entretenimiento en el World Press Photo, el más importante certamen mundial de fotoperiodismo, hoy viernes 10 de febrero de 2012. La imagen muestra a una modelo posando en el taller de un sastre en el centro de Dakar, Senegal el 9 de julio de 2011. EFE/VINCENT BOISOT/RIVA PRESS/LE FIGARO ***ESTA FOTOGRAFÍA SOLO PUEDE SER UTILIZADA EN EL CONTEXTO DE LA CONCESIÓN DEL PREMIO WORLD PRESS PHOTO. SOLO USO EDITORIAL. PROHIBIDA SU VENTA Y SU ARCHIVO***

AM02.AMSTERDAM (HOLANDA).10/2/2012.- Fotografí­a tomada por el fotógrafo irlandés Ray Mcmanus para Sportsfile que ha sido galardonada con el segundo premio en la categorí­a individual de deportes en el World Press Photo, el más importante certamen mundial de fotoperiodismo, hoy viernes 10 de febrero de 2012. La imagen muestra una jugada en el partido de rugby entre Old Belvedere y Blackrock en Dublin, irlanda el 5 de febrero de 2011. EFE/RAY MCMANUS/SPORTSFILE ***ESTA FOTOGRAFÍA SOLO PUEDE SER UTILIZADA EN EL CONTEXTO DE LA CONCESIÓN DEL PREMIO WORLD PRESS PHOTO. SOLO USO EDITORIAL. PROHIBIDA SU VENTA Y SU ARCHIVO***

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st Prize Portraits Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo Contest by Laerke Posselt, Denmark, shows Iranian-born Danish actress Mellica Mehraban, Copenhagen, May 4, 2011. (AP Photo/Laerke Posselt)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 2nd prize Portraits Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo Contest by Ton Koene, The Netherlands shows a recruit at a police training center, Kunduz, Afghanistan, Sept. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Ton Koene)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Nature Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Jenny E. Ross, USA. Novaya Zemlya, Russia, shows a male polar bear climbing precariously on the face of a cliff above the ocean at Ostrova Oranskie in northern Novaya Zemlya, attempting to feed on seabird eggs. (AP Photo/Jenny E. Ross)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo the 2nd prize People in the News Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Tomasz Lazar, Poland shows the arrest of protesters in Harlem, New York City, during a demonstration against police tactics and income inequality, Oct. 25, 2011. (AP Photo/Tomasz Lazar)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Arts and Entertainment Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Rob Hornstra, The Netherlands shows the Sochi Project: Sochi Singers Marika Bajur sings ‘Kuriu’ in the restaurant Eurasia. (AP Photo/Rob Hornstra)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Contemporary Issues Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Stephanie Sinclair, USA, VII Photo Agency for National Geographic magazine shows Tahani (in pink), who married her husband Majed when she was 6 and he was 25, posing for this portrait with former classmate Ghada, also a child bride, outside their mountain home in Hajjah, Yemen, June 10, 2010. Nearly half of all women in Yemen were married as children. (AP Photo/Stephanie Sinclair, VII Photo Agency for National Geographic magazine)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Spot News Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo Contest by Yuri Kozyrev, Russia, Noor Images for Time shows rebels in Ras Lanuf, Libya, March 11, 2011. (AP Photo/Yuri Kozyrev, Noor Images for Time)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Nature Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Brent Stirton, South Africa, Reportage by Getty Images for National Geographic magazine shows “Rhino Wars”, Tugela Private Game Reserve, Colenso, Natal, South Africa, Nov. 9 2010. A female rhino, left, in Natal, South Africa, that four months earlier survived a brutal dehorning by poachers who used a chainsaw to remove her horns and a large section of bone in this area of her skull. (AP Photo/Brent Stirton, Reportage by Getty Images for National Geographic magazine)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize General News Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Alex Majoli, Italy, Magnum Photos for Newsweek shows protesters cry, chant and scream in Cairo’s Tahrir Square, after listening to the speech in which Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said he would not give up power in Cairo, Egypt, Feb. 10, 2011. (AP Photo/Alex Majoli, Magnum Photos for Newsweek)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Daily Life Stories of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Alejandro Kirchuk, Argentina “Never Let You Go”. Marcos leads Monica from their room to the living room in Buenos Aires. Monica was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. (AP Photo/Alejandro Kirchuk)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Contemporary Issues Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Brent Stirton, South Africa, Reportage by Getty Images for Kiev Independent, shows Maria, a drug addict and sex worker, in between clients in a room she rents in Kryvyi Rig, Ukraine. Maria injects drugs on a daily basis and sees many men every week but claims she remains HIV negative. She says she need the money to support herself, her drug habit and her nine-year-old daughter. (AP Photo/Brent Stirton, Reportage by Getty Images for Kiev Independent)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 2nd prize Sports Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Adam Pretty, Australia, Getty Images shows divers practicing during the 14th FINA World Championships at the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai, China, July 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Adam Pretty, Getty Images)

In this photo provided on Friday Feb. 10, 2012 by World Press Photo, the 1st prize Daily Life Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest by Damir Sagolj, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Reuters, shows a picture of North Korea’s founder, Kim Il-sung, decorating a building in the capital Pyongyang, North Korea, Oct. 5, 2011. (AP Photo/Damir Sagolj, Reuters)

FILE – In this April 7, 2011 file photo, footprints are left in the dried mud of a street of the Odaka area of Minamisoma, inside the deserted evacuation zone established for the 20 kilometer radius around the Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear reactors. The photo was one in a series of 12 which won the 3rd place prize in the General News Stories category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest.  (AP Photo/David Guttenfelder for National Geographic Magazine, File)

FILE – In this June 24, 2011 file photo, Canadian Forces soldier, Cpl. Ben Vandandaigue, plays on a drum kit on Forward Operating Base Sperwan Ghar overlooking the Panjwaii district of Kandahar province, Afghanistan. The image won the 1st place prize in the Arts and Entertainment Singles category of the 2012 World Press Photo contest.   (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

Aquí tenéis el enlace a la galería con todos los premiados en la página web de los World Press Photo.

FILE In this Feb. 16, 2010 file photo, a model takes a tumble on the runway during the Marc by Marc Jacobs fall 2010 fashion show, during Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig, File)

A media tarde ha llegado esta edición de la agencia americana Ap en la que aparecen modelos perdiendo el equilibrio en la pasarela. Zapatos nuevos con tacones imposibles  de tallas incorrectas, tarimas resbaladizas o zancadas vistosas pero poco seguras, pueden ser las causas de estas vergonzosas caidas.  Se supone que estas fotos sirven para ilustrar algún tema sobre la vida de las modelos que no tiene relevancia en España. Pero me han hecho gracia y me ha parecido indicado compartirlas con vosotros. Imágenes en que las chicas guapas también tropiezan y caen al suelo.

FILE In this Sept. 18, 2010 file photo, a model loses her balance and falls during the showing of the Betty Jackson collection during Fashion Week in London. (AP Photo/Alastair Grant, File)

FILE – In this Feb. 15, 2009 file photo, a model falls down on the runway while modeling the fall 2009 collection of Herve Leger by Max Azria during Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/ Louis Lanzano, File)

FILE In this Sept. 11, 2010 file photo, a model stumbles before falling on the runway as the Z Spoke by Zac Posen spring 2011 collection is modeled during Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/Jason DeCrow, File)

FILE – In this Oct. 20, 2011 file photo, a model loses her balance while modeling the 2012 spring/summer collection by Araisara during Fashion Week in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara, File)

FILE – In this Sept. 11, 2006 file photo, a model trips and falls during the Proenza Schouler spring 2007 runway show during Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/Paul Hawthorne, File)

FILE – In this Feb. 10, 2011 file photo, a model falls to the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall 2011 show during Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/File)

FILE – In this Feb. 7, 2008 file photo, one model helps another up after she fell while walking the runway during the showing of Zac Posen’s Fall 2008 collection at Fashion Week in New York. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)

FILE – In this Feb. 22, 2011 file photo, a model walks the runway holding her shoe after loosing it during the showing of the Aquascutum collection during Fashion Week in London. (AP Photo/Jonathan Short, File)

MTI108 SALGOTARJAN (HUNGRÍA) 6/2/2012.- Imagen de un copo de nieve, en Salgotarjan, a 109 kms al noreste de Budapest, Hungrí­a, hoy, lunes, 6 de febrero de 2012. EFE/Peter Komka PROHIBIDO SU USO EN HUNGRÍA

Una ola de frío siberiano recorre Europa y comparto con vosotros esta edición gráfica con la nieve, el hielo y el frío como protagonista. En diciembre de 2010 ya hice otra edición sobre el mismo tema con el título de “La nieve cubre Europa”, si os quedáis con ganas de más nieve os lo recomiendo. También os invito a ver las ediciones gráficas sobre esta última ola de frío europea en The Big Picture de The Boston Globe y de In Focus de The Atlantic.

Two people walk through the snow-laden footpaths of Alexandra Park, north London on February 5, 2012. Heavy snow fell overnight across South East England, causing many roads to become blocked.  AFP PHOTO / LEON NEAL

An advertising hoarding of the Osborne bull in Burgos peeks out the side of a snowy escarpment as snow hits northern Spain on February 5, 2012. The Arctic cold snap that has hit Europe for over a week had claimed nearly 300 lives today, brought air travel chaos to London and dumped snow as far south as Rome and even North Africa.  AFP PHOTO / CESAR MANSO

A warning sign is seen on top of the Rosa Khutor Alpine Resort in the western Caucasian mountains near Krasnaya Polyana some 40 km outside of the Black Sea city of Sochi February 7, 2012. Rosa Khutor is hosting men’s and women’s downhill and super combined Alpine Skiing World Cup races over the next two weekend in preparation for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games. The weather conditions of the Olympic skiing venues are maritime and very likely to be similar to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics in the Whistler mountains.       REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay  (RUSSIA – Tags: SPORT SKIING ENVIRONMENT)

A lion cub plays with a snowball at the Belgrade Zoo on February 5, 2012. In Serbia, almost 70,000 people are still cut off from their villages and 32 municipalities have declared a state of emergency, mostly in the south and southwest of the country. So far, nine people have died of cold in the country. The snow, which stopped falling early today, is expected to start again overnight, with temperatures falling below minus 10 degrees Celsius.  AFP PHOTO / ALEXA STANKOVIC

A man walks past an ice covered car on the frozen waterside promenade at Lake Geneva in the city Versoix, near Geneva on early February 5, 2012. The death toll from the vicious cold snap across Europe has risen to more than 260, with the winter misery set to hit thousands of those seeking to escape it as air traffic was hit.    AFP PHOTO / FABRICE COFFRINI

A blue tit feeds in a garden covered by snow in Cesson-Sevigne, Western France on February 05, 2012.  AFP PHOTO DAMIEN MEYER

KLM planes are seen through a plane’s window during heavy snowfall at Schiphol airport on February 3, 2012 near Dutch capital Amsterdam. AFP PHOTO/ PATRICK BAZ

Gulls fly over a partly frozen lake in in Berlin on January 15, 2012. First snow of the year fell on the German capital, with temperatures around the freezing point.      AFP PHOTO / JOHANNES EISELE

A woman walks under snowfall on Istanbul’s Istiklal Avenue on January 30, 2012. Heavy snowfall blanketed Turkey’s commercial hub Istanbul, a city of 15 million, paralysing daily life, disrupting air traffic and land transport. Officials said almost 200 flights were cancelled due to the snow expected to continue until late tomorrow, according to the weather forecast.    AFP PHOTO / MUSTAFA OZER

Sculptor Nenad Vuckovic puts the finishing touches to his snow sculpture, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012. Freezing weather is affecting huge areas of Europe disrupting traffic. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

A man protects himself with an umbrella as he walks on a street covered with snow in Pamplona, northern Spain, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012.  Freezing weather is affecting huge areas of Europe and the weeklong cold snap, the worst in decades in Eastern Europe, has killed more than a hundred people, many of them homeless, especially in countries such as Ukraine. (AP Photo/Alvaro Barrientos)

Snow covered land is seen in the town of Alexandria, northern Greece, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012.  Europeans across the continent have been battling more than a week of extreme weather, with thousands still trapped by snow in remote mountain villages and some hundreds dead after temperatures hit as low as minus 33 Fahrenheit (minus 36 Celsius); and European authorities now facing the prospect of flooding caused by melting snow. (AP Photo/Nikolas Giakoumidis)

A skier passes a snow-covered field in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, southern Germany, on February 3, 2012. Temperatures plunged to new lows in Europe where a week-long cold snap has now claimed more than 220 lives and forecasters warned that the big freeze would tighten its grip at the weekend. AFP PHOTO/CHRISTOF STACHE

Precipitation drops are seen on a window as a man walks in a street in Kabul on January 22, 2012. The death toll from heavy snowfalls and avalanches rose to at least 28, an official said today. Dozens more people have been injured or are trapped in their homes under up to three metres 10 feet of snow in remote Badakhshan province, where main roads have been cut, making it difficult for rescue workers to reach affected villages. AFP PHOTO/ Qais Usyan

A fence is covered with snow after a heavy snowfall in the Northern Spanish Basque village of Izoria, on February 2, 2012.  A cold snap kept Europe in its icy grip, pushing the death toll to 160 as countries from Italy to Ukraine struggled to cope with temperatures that plunged to record lows in some places.  AFP PHOTO / RAFA RIVAS

An unidentified pedestrian walks a dog through snow covered woodland outside York, north eastern England, as freezing weather hits the country Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012. Britain is digging out after heavy snow fell across the country, grounding planes and snarling roads and railways. Much of the U.K. remains under an amber warning _ the Met Office’s second most serious _ of icy conditions after up to 16 centimeters (6.3 inches) fell overnight. Some motorists spent the night in their cars amid treacherous highway conditions, and officials urged drivers on Sunday to stay off the icy roads. (AP Photo/PA, Anna Gowthorpe)  UNITED KINGDOM OUT  NO SALES  NO ARCHIVE

Several inches of snow is seen on top of a Royal Mail post box in London February 5, 2012. Heavy snow is forecast overnight across central and southern England, with a possibility of up to 15 cm (6 inches) could fall in the London area. Temperatures were also not expected to climb above minus 2 degrees Celsius (28 degrees Fahrenheit), leading to icy conditions. REUTERS/Russell Boyce (BRITAIN – Tags: ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY)

Snow covers boats on a frozen section of the Sava river in Belgrade, Serbia, Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012. Serbian emergency officials said the army will use explosives to break up ice on the Danube and Ibar rivers to try to prevent the possibility of flooding.  (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

A goose peers from its snow-covered cage at a park in Istanbul January 31, 2012. REUTERS/Murad Sezer (TURKEY – Tags: ANIMALS ENVIRONMENT SOCIETY)

Drift ice floats on the river Elbe on February 5, 2012 in Magdeburg, eastern Germany. The Arctic cold snap that has hit Europe for over a week had claimed nearly 300 lives by February 5, 2012, brought air travel chaos to London and dumped snow as far south as Rome and even North Africa.     AFP PHOTO / JENS WOLF    GERMANY OUT

Police officers carry bags with their food for the day as they walk through a snow covered  Hampstead Heath in London at the start of their morning shift, Sunday, Feb. 5, 2012.  (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

A rescue helicopter of the Helicopter Service RS, flies over an isolated village cut off by snow in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina February 6, 2012. Europe’s bitterly cold weather killed another 33 people on Monday, with Bosnia recording its eighth victim after an 87-year- old woman died of hypothermia. Farmers were having problems feeding cattle because of the snow and milk production had dropped by 15 to 30 percent in the country, the Bosnia’s farmers association said.  REUTERS/Dado Ruvic (BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA – Tags: ENVIRONMENT TRANSPORT)

A detail shows freshly fallen snow on the iron work of the Eiffel Tower in Paris as sub-freezing winter temperatures continue in Europe February 5, 2012.     REUTERS/John Schults (FRANCE – Tags: ENVIRONMENT TRAVEL)

A robin (Erithacus rubecula)  sits next to icicles in a park in Weimar, eastern Germany, Tuesday Feb. 7, 2012.  Europe was hit by a cold spell with temperatures plummeting far below the freezing point.  (AP Photo/dapd/Candy Welz)

A crucifix on the Taubenberg mountain in Warngau is covered with snow on February 2, 2012. Snow and temperatures close to -14 degrees Celsius (7 degrees Fahrenheit) have hit parts of southern Germany in the last few days. German met office DWD expected the icy high pressure front from northern Russia to last well into next week.  REUTERS/Michael Dalder   (GERMANY – Tags: RELIGION TRAVEL ENVIRONMENT)

A photo taken on February 4, 2012 shows people looking at the ancient forum in Rome after a snowfall. A rare mantle of snow blanketed the historic center of Rome on February 3, forcing the closure of schools and tourist sites such as the Colosseum.    The snow covered palm trees, ancient Roman ruins and Baroque churches across the normally mild-weather Italian capital which has only seen one snowfall in the past 15 years in which the snow stayed on the ground for a whole day.  AFP PHOTO / FILIPPO MONTEFORTE