which makes summer particularly pleasant compared to coastal cities. On
the other hand, winters are colder than on the coast. Precipitation is less
abundant overall (around 600 mm (24 in) per year, compared to
900 mm (35 in) in Beirut) but snowfalls occur fairly often during cold
fronts coming from Turkey or Eastern Europe, and heavy snow accumulation is not
unheard of. The north wind that enters the valley is so cold that residents say
that it can "break nails"; here, temperatures can easily plummet
below -15 °C (-5 °F). In spring, weather is sometimes affected by the notorious
Khamsin winds, whose typical effects include a rise in temperature
