Harbin, in north China

Harbin, the capital city of China's northernmost province, Heilongjiang (just across the border from Russian Siberia, is famous for its Ice and Snow Festival (January-February). The festival is one of the largest (featuring ice and snow sculptures) in the world. There are tons of ice carvings and snow sculptures. Blocks of ice are chainsawed from the Songhua River for the sculptures. It was absolutely amazing. Opening day for 2006's festival was January 6th and I was there. It was only a 2 hour drive from Changchun, where we were staying with Yeheng's parents and Yeheng's uncle drove us. We spent one night in Harbin. The only drawback was that I could not keep my feet warm. It was freezing cold and I do mean freezing. Walking around in the daylight was tolerable. Once night fell I simply could not get my toes to quit hurting from the cold (yes, we all know what that's a sign of). Opening day festivities included a great array of fireworks. I was shocked to see a firework that, upon exploding in the air, rained down beautiful small Chinese lanterns that were LIT UP inside! I wish I had captured it on film. Before the opening ceremonies (where important people speak in a language I cannot understand and the Ice Queen is revealed) we stayed inside one of the "warming" huts (small snack shops/bars). At one point we were all sitting at a table and the subject of karaoke singing came up. I admitted my fondness for it although I rarely engage in karaoke singing. That did not deter me, however, from singing a few bars of Country Roads by John Denver! ha ha After a few seconds of singing this song at the table nearly the entire room got quiet which is when I stopped. That was unusual behavior for me. Normally, I would have stood up and gotten louder, waving my arms around. Perhaps it had something to do with being in China. Most likely, I didn't want to embarass my Chinese hosts. Everyone knows it's fairly hard to embarass myself.
What a great side trip from within China. We had a wonderful hotpot dinner that evening (where everyone gets their own little fondue-like pot of seasoned oil and you cook your own beef; simply delicious) and did some shopping in shops filled with Russian souvenirs (Harbin also has a Russian history and there are many Russians living in Harbin).
I miss being in China. Maybe that's what caused me to apply for a position as the assistant to the CEO of a company in Shanghai. :) Yes, I really did. If I were buds with Shirley McClaine she'd probably tell me I was Chinese in a past life.