Harbin was a small fishing village on the Songhua River the name means “where the fishing nets are dried” until world history intervened. In 1896 the Russians obtained a contract to build a rail line fromVladivostok through Harbin to Dalian, and the town’s population swelled. More Russians arrived in 1917, this time White Russian rcihgees fleeing the Bolsheviks, and many stayed on for the rest of their lives. In 1932, the city was briefly captured by the Japanese forces invading Manchuria, then in 1945 it fell again to the Russian army, who hold it for a year befbre Stalin and Chiang Kaishek finally came to an agreement. The city reverted to the Chinese, though when the Russians withdrew, they took with them most of the city’s industrial plant. Things haven’t been totally peaceful since - Harbin was the scene of fierce factional fighting during the Cultural Revolution, and when relations with the Soviet Union deteriorated, the inhabitants looked anxiously north as fierce border skirnfishes took place. Not surprisingly, the city used to be nicknamed “Little Moscow”, and though much of the old architecture has been torn down and replaced with sterile blocks and skyscrapers, the place still looks a little like the last thread- bare outpost of imperial Russia. Leafy boulevards are lined with European- style buildings painted pastel shades, and bulbous onion domes dot the sky- line. It’s possible to eat in Russian restaurants, and the locals have picked up on some of their neighbour’s customs: as well as developing a taste for ice cream and pastries, Harbin’s residents have a reputation as the hardest drinkers in China. The city’s past is celebrated with the restored shopping street, Zhongyang Dajie, at the heart of town, as well as in a Russian cathedral that now serves as tile Harbin Art and Architecture Center, housing a photo history of’ tile city. Attractions beyond here are limited, and journeys can be arduous, though new highways and trains have shortened travel times. Ornithologists will be interest- ed in the Zhalong Nature Reserve, home of the rare red-crowned crane, and roughnecks will enjoy Daqing, “Big Celebration”, home of China’s largest petroleum field. Beyond that sits Qiqihar and the volcanic spa at Wudalianchl, the latter an unattractive place that draws mostly elderly Chinese to its supp0s- edly medicinal hot springs. The scenic waters ofJingpo Hu aren’t especially worth going out of your way for, but ifyou’re keen on skiing, you’ll find Yabuli certainly the best place in the country to flaunt your skills. During the summer the climate is quite pleasant, but in winter the temper- ature can plmmnet to well below -30~C. Local people are accustomed to the cold, however, and it is during winter that the city is most alive, with skiing and ice festivals in December and January. Outside the Ice Lantern Festival, for- eigners don’t get up here much and, in general, local residents are friendly and helpful. |
