May 1st this year is not going to be a day for barbecues and sunshine. Weather alerts warn that the Balkans will freeze - on the morning of May 1st, temperatures in parts of the region will drop to -10 degrees. Rain, snow in the mountains, temperatures barely above 10 degrees in the lowlands.

No forecast like this is good news for the traditional celebration. May 1st in the Balkan mentality means the opening of summer - a trip to the countryside, a barbecue with friends, the first real lunch on the terrace. That scene is in danger this year.

For Macedonia the forecast is specifically sour: rain all day, temperatures between 10 and 14 degrees. In the mountains - snow. That means everyone who had planned a trip to Mavrovo, Kratovo, Kičevo or Vinica for the traditional outing may have to adjust the plan.

In Serbia the situation is more intense. Zlatibor and Kopaonik already with snow. Belgrade - 8-9 degrees, rain all day. Turkish villas, always full on May 1st, will be empty this year. The tourism sector in the region - another weather surprise.

Climatology describes this as "a polar flow descending lower than usual". In practice - Arctic air reaches the Balkans in the last days of April. Not unprecedented, but unusual for this period. Similar events happened in 2017 and 2019, with less intensity.

What can we do? Dress warmly for May 1st. Bring hats. The barbecue can be on the terrace, not in the open. And consider - maybe it's time we admitted that climate anomalies aren't "anomalies" anymore. This is the new normal. And this new normal in the Balkans means fewer planned weekends and more spontaneous adjustments to weather that no longer follows the rules.