Harbin is the capital and largest city of Heilongjiang, the northernmost province of China, part of the historical region of Manchuria. With a population of over five million people, and ten million in its metropolitan area, Harbin is one of the main centers in Northeast China. Founded in 1898 by the Russians when they were building the Chinese Eastern Railway, the city grew quickly, and it is now known for its combination of European-style and Chinese-style architecture, but also for its freezing temperatures. With a mean temperature of around –20 °C during winter, Harbin is nicknamed “Ice City”, and hosts the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival.
This annual event is the largest ice and snow festival in the world, known for its enormous and elaborate ice and snow sculptures that attract millions of tourists to the city. The event officially begins with the opening ceremony on January 5 every year, but usually the sculptures are present in Harbin from late December to early March, when they start to melt. During this time, ice decorations and sculptures can be found all over the city, but mainly in two large exhibition areas: the Ice and Snow World and Sun Island.
The Ice and Snow World is the largest area and features several full size buildings, which are different every year as they are rebuilt with new designs each time. Sun Island is instead a park located on the northern side of the Songhua River, the river that crosses the city. This area hosts an exhibition of huge and elaborate snow sculptures, often depicting mythical creatures. Overall, the festival hosts hundreds of landmarks made of ice and snow, sculpted by artists from different countries, who compete in the annual contest to decide the best works.
A snow sculpture in the Sun Island exhibition area during the 2010 Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival (Dayou_X, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0).
The ice sculptures in both exhibition areas are made from thick blocks of ice taken from the Songhua River. The ice is extracted from the river with swing saws in early December, and is then sculpted by artists who work for days to make the most elaborate decorations. Each year, thousands of artisans work on the sculptures, using over 100,000 cubic meters of ice. Some artists use deionised water to decorate their creations with transparent ice blocks, and multicolored light are often used to adorn the ice buildings of the Ice and Snow World, creating a wonderful spectacle, especially at night.
Indeed, the best time to visit the Ice and Snow World is during the late afternoon and the evening. Harbin gets dark around 4 pm during winter, so entering a bit before that time allows visitors to enjoy both the transparent ice blocks shining in the daylight, and the illuminated sculptures in the dark.
Ice buildings illuminated in the dark in the Ice and Snow World during the 2008 Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival (John Pannell, Flickr, CC BY 2.0).
The festival has been held since 1985, but its origins date back to the ice lantern shows held in the city in the 1960s. These shows are now one of many activities held in Harbin during the festival, with exhibitions taking place in Zhaolin Park, a park in the center of the city. Here, ice lanterns decorate the park, and are often themed around Chinese traditions and folklore.
Other events held during this time include wedding ceremonies on ice, snow mobile driving, ice hockey, ice football, speed skating, swimming and fishing in the freezing Songhua River, and skiing competitions, with some events taking place also in the nearby Yabuli Ski Resort, the largest ski resort in China. Also, food and drink stalls are located around the exhibition areas and all the main avenues and parks of the city during the festival.
There are a few other similar large festivals with huge ice and snow sculptures around the world: the Sapporo Snow Festival in Japan, the Quebec Winter Carnival in Quebec City, Canada, and the Holmenkollen Ski Festival in Norway.
A reproduction of the Parthenon in Athens made from ice at the 2008 Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival (Elijah Wilcott, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).
Harbin also offers other interesting tourist attractions, including the modern Harbin Grand Theatre and the historic buildings of the city center, especially along the main avenue Zhongyang Dajie. The city hosts the Orthodox Saint Sophia Cathedral, built in the early 20th century, which is the largest Orthodox church in East Asia, and the greatest architectural work of its kind in the region. Now it serves as a museum of local architecture and art. Harbin also hosts other religious buildings, such as the New Jewish Sinagogue, the Buddhist Jile Temple, and the Confucius Temple, all of which are among the largest of their kind in Northeast China.
The city is also renowned for its culinary tradition, with a combination of Han Chinese, Manchu, and Russian culture. The most famous local food is guo bao rou, a form of sweet and sour pork, while another popular regional specialty is a kind of smoked savory red sausage.
Harbin can be reached by plane from most Chinese cities, with some flights also from nearby countries such as South Korea, Japan, and Russia. The city is also well connected by train, road, and bus to other nearby cities. When visiting Harbin in winter, be careful of the freezing temperatures, which can plummet to –30°C, and dress accordingly.