First Day in Harbin

My trip to Harbin, China began when my friend Isabel called to see if I would like to go there over the three day New Year's break. If you look Harbin up, you will find it way up north close to the Russian border. A quick check on the Internet informed me that the temperature would be between -20 to -25 degrees during our visit. I was a little nervous about going, but decided I probably would never have another opportunity - because none of my other friends are as brave and adventuresome as Isabel. I packed my little suitcase, but on two layers of clothes under my coat, and started the trip. Walking out of the airport was our first clue about how cold we were going to be for the next three days.

The next pictures are from the bus on the way into town.

The fence along the side of the road is made of ice which guided out path into the city.

Harbin was founded by the Russians in 1898. Today it has 10,000,000 and is the tenth largest city in China. It also is one of the coldest cities in China - I can attest to that. It still seems very connected to Russia today. All of the signs are in Chinese and Russian, and even though we saw quite a few foreigners during our three-day stay, we didn't hear English from anyone else.

When the bus arrived in the city, Isabel and I got off to look for our hotel. We had no idea where we were going, but we did see a Holiday Inn and used their bathroom to add another layer of clothes before continuing on our search. We finally reached the hotel, registered and unpacked. We then ventured out to take a look around. It appears to be very late in the evening in the following pictures, but it is really just around 6:00 p.m. The days are not very long in the north. During the Ice Festival, Harbin turns one of their main streets into a walking street and there are many ice sculptures along the way. 

I was surprised how many people were out with us on our cold walk. I am sure all of us were a little crazy. 

 Sorry the night pictures are so dark. I need to get a fancy camera and learn how to take better pictures. Maybe in the next life.

Our hotel was about a block down the street behind this sculpture.

This is how I looked when we got back to the hotel.

Second layer of clothes.

Third layer of clothes.

Fourth layer of clothes. Thank goodness for Walmart long  johns.

Fifth layer of clothes.

All of the clothes I had been wearing.

I took changes of clothes for the three-day trip but ended up putting everything in my suitcase on each day in order to stay warm. I also added two hats, two pairs of gloves and some warm boots. I actually was okay after that - except my hands. I couldn't take pictures with two gloves on, so I would have to pull my hand out to snap the pictures. It only took a few seconds for the hand to be feel like it was totally frozen. I even tried putting some of those little warmers in, and they were good for a little while, but they couldn't counter the freezing cold when the fingers hit the air. If I were to ever do it again, I would get much better gloves, but then again, I don't think I will ever be doing it again.

After a hot cup of water, we settled in for the night. We obviously didn't rent a room in a five-star hotel. It was warmer than outside, but still plenty chilly. Once we added the extra blankets, coats, scarfs, and jackets, we were able to sleep quite comfortably. I can't even imagine what the people did when they settled the town in 1898 and lived in tents. I guess that was the day when animal fur was necessary for survival.

The first day of our adventure came to an end. See you in the morning.