http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , China , Dongbei , Harbin en-us Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:02:13 UTC Fri, 05 Dec 2008 03:02:13 UTC Heilongjiang province is the most northeastern province in China with a population of 39 million about 4 million in Harbin. Some interesting tidbits about Harbin it has the tallest freestanding tower in Asia Harbin Industrial University is the 6th largest in China and has many Russian students the first department store was built in 1901 public schools are named by number and usually don't http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-170494.html This morning we cruised around Jinbro Lake. It's 46km long the second largest volcanic crater lake in the world. The largest is somewhere in Switzerland. The rich and powerful have villas around the lake. Some universities also have cottages here for summer retreats. Some of the highlights include crocodile islands and a mountain that looks like a supine chairman Mao from a certain angle. After http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-170484.html We logeerden in het Xiangjiang shiji dajiudian Hong Kong Century HotelAdres Songzhi dajie 212 Daoliu district 150010 HarbinTel 0451 8677 5777 en 5666 kamers reserveren in het chinees via 0451 8677 5688Ligging Tegenover het het Zhaolin park en vlakbij de Zhongyang dajie en het Stalin park. Prijs en wat inbegrepen Tijdens het festival betaalden we 268Y voor een tweepersoonskamer me http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-147586.html Many major cities have an Ice bar where everything is made of ice the chairs tables glasses and even the building Well imagine an entire city made of ice And then imagine it at night and then imagine it lit up with bright lights now you are at the Harbin Ice Lantern FestivalThe Ice Lantern Festival is one of the Events that Harbin is most Famous for and we were expecing some pretty imp http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-128604.html Hello all sorry that this has taken so long to post but that last week or so has been pretty hectic.We arrived into Harbin on the train from Vladivostok early yesterday morning. We noticed the difference with Russia straight away people smiled at us couldnt believe it. Lots of people we have met have said that the Chinese may stop and stare at us being westerners but this hasnt really happ http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-128598.html The Ice Festival is probably the main reason why many tourists visit Harbin in winter it may be the only reason to visit Harbin all year round. A 2.5 hour flight from Shanghai will get you there. Upon arrival some guys from Beijing were hovering around in the 10 cold deliberating about taxis. 'These guys here are major rip offs' they warned. My companion and I hopped on the bus for 20 yuan in http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-126281.html I am pleased to to bring into the spot light the 2 cheapest last minute purchases that have served me so well on this trip. First I would like to introduce my 20 running shoes that I picked up at SAAN right before I left. They have not only aided me to climb the great wall etc for the last 2 months but have kept my feet in less pain then any of my other shoes hands down. Secondly i would http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-85360.html So I got on the train no problem everything was smooth in Beijing. The ride out to Harbin was quiet a nice sleeper car so caught up on rest a little reading and a little looking at the countryside. I was going to be purchasing a ticket to Suifenhe once I arrived and then deciding in Suifenhe whether I would take the bus or train into Russia. I arrived in Harbin very early so early that I w http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-71705.html Harbin normally best known for its Ice Snow Sculpture Festival which takes place in January appeared on television sets around the world last November as the water supply of the city's 3.8 million inhabitants was cut off for several days. An accident at a chemical plant in a city upstream from Harbin had polluted the city's main water source the Songhua river with a 80km long benzene slick. http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-65489.html Heyhab hier so viele Eindruecke das ich gar nicht weiss was ich zu erst schreiben soll. Deshalb auch noch ein Nachtrag. Einfach unglaublich dieses Land. Besonders das Essen. War heute Mittag zu Gast bei einem Geschaeftsessen mein russischer Zugnachbar hat mich da mitgeschleift. Da gab es wirklich alles. Es war eine Suppe mit 35 Zutaten. Nun als erstes war da nur die Suppe quasi Wasser mit Gew http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-50144.html Hey es ist kein Aprilscherz der Kerl ist in China angekommen. Und es geht ihm gutDoch ersteinmal noch ein paar worte zu Russland. Vladivostok ist eine echt tolle stadt. Vielleicht ein wenig rauh doch alles in allem hat mir das dort gut gefallen. Ich habe die zwei Tage welche ich dort war gut genutzt. Museum Uboot Besichtigung und eine Fahrt mit der Faehre zur Insel vor Vladivostok. War beson http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-50060.html It is a twilight time now. A time of soft light from the sky between sunset and the full darkness a time of long shadows that follow you to where ever you are going it is a time of vagueness of being in between a time for a mood to be setting in a period of decline of stretching a tired body and a searching soul a time of travels and of dreams a time when East meets West. It is a time fo http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-46701.html On a warm August afternoon at the end of summer 2002 I landed at Harbinrsquos airport. From the window on the Air China plane the city looked gray dusty and somewhat tired after trying to survive the heat of the fading summer. I did not mind it. I was exited to be here again and looked forward to a pleasant and enjoyable time in this northern city capital of Heilongjiang Province China. I http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-46688.html The streets are quiet hushed. Like a patter of rain the sounds of rolling wheels and a light breeze through the trees. The clackclack of keyboards the random sick cough and the squeal of an old bus coming to a stop the doors rattling open and the sound of a paint chip falling to the ground.The memories pass across the mind a wave of nausia at first and then a song. In the memories the http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Dongbei/Harbin/blog-14096.html