Another trip to the far North of China, but this time in January.
At the train station in Harbin, they helpfully installed a thermometer right above the platform, so that as soon as you step off your train you know what you’re in for. When I got off the Beijing night train that morning, it read -34C.
Harbin feels a little different from your typical Chinese city. It developed primarily when it was part of Russia in the 19th and the early 20th centuries and was settled by Russians and Eastern Europeans working on the Trans-Siberian line to the nearby Vladivostok. That legacy is still visible, both in terms of the architecture and food.
The city took advantage of its harsh winters and is now home to the world’s largest ice sculpture festival. That includes the Ice and Snow World where you have building-sized sculptures hewn out of blocks of ice, as well as many smaller sculptures scattered across the city
Crossing the frozen river 
Frozen river 
Ice and Snow World
The main reason why you’d want to come here in the middle of winter
