Harbin, China's must Visit Winter Destination

A variety ofdifferent builds andice-artwork can beseen throughoutthe park.

One of China's largest wintertourist resorts， Harbin， is myfavourite winter destination inChina. Harbin is the capitalcity of China's Northeastern Heilongjiangprovince. The city's main attractionat this time of year is the magnificentHarbin Ice and Snow Festival that runsannually throughout the months ofJanuary and February. The festival is acelebration of Harbin's notoriously coldweather conditions whereby temperaturescan reach -30C. Each year， teams oficesculptors carve and construct toweringstructures in grand and colourful manner.

A variety of different builds and ice-artwork can be seen throughout the park.

Giant towers and replicas oficonic buildings tend to dominate theskyline， however， mazes and sculpturesof everyday things，for example trains，characterize other parts of the festival.Some of the constructions are eveninteractive such as slides and ice rinks forspecially adapted bicycles.

The best time of day to visitthe festival is towards the end of theafternoon， this way you can benefit fromseeing the sculptures in both daylightand night time. In the daytime the whiteice buildings accentuate the harshnessof Harbin's freezing winter conditions.Conversely， at nighttime the samebuildings appear as though they areenchanted， as they glow in a multitudeof bright colours like giant Lego bricksstacked upon each other.

Although the main focus in winteris the ice festival， the city has a lot to offerin other areas as well. Architecturally，Harbin is markedly different from China'sother major cities. The city's facades havea distinctive Russian influence due toHarbin's geographic position and historicclose ties to Russia.

Harbin's food is also a delight andmany of the local dishes carry Europeaninfluences. One of the most traditionaleats is a Germanesque smoked sausage.The sausage is commonly served with adense piece ofsough-dour bread.

My favourite dish is 'Guo Bao Rou'.Bite-sized chunks of pork are cooked indeep-fried batter and then glazed witha sweet-and-sour flavor. It is one of thecity's most famous dishes and serves as apopular item on menus of Northeasternstyle restaurants across China. It iscertainly worth sampling even whenoutside of Heilongjiang.

One of the most peculiar localpreferences is the local's penchant for icecream. In the western countries， ice creamis often considered a summer cuisine anda food to cool your body temperaturedown on warm days. In Harbin however，it is viewed as an everyday treat andpeople queue at length outside shopsto buy ice cream in a variety of flavoursserved popsicle style on a wooden stick.

Harbin's remote location in theNortheast of China makes the city anawkward place to travel to， particularly forthose living outside of Northern China.However， the city's unique attractionsand accessibility via air and rail (althoughprepare for a long journey!) make it aworthwhile visit. The Harbin Ice andSnow Festival expect to attract around to800，000 people this year.