At minus thirty, Harbin people carve their days into ice.
Harbin's cold is a passionate cold.
In January, the Songhua River freezes into a skating rink. People skate and ride sleds on the ice; children scream with joy on ice carts. The ice sculptures on Central Street glitter under the lights, like a city made of crystal.
Harbin people are not afraid of the cold. At minus twenty, they queue for Modern ice pops and eat them in the snow. Kill-the-pig stew, guobaorou, iron-pot stew — scalding food arrives at the table, and no matter how hard the wind blows outside, the room stays steaming.
The ice lanterns of Ice and Snow World blaze in every colour; the ice slide sends you flying, screams and laughter mixed. Harbin people have turned winter into a festival: since the cold cannot be avoided, they say, make it the most fun thing there is.
