Harbin was definitely one of the most extreme places I have been to on the planet in regards to the temperature. I’ve been in temperatures up to 50C and now I can say I have been in -25C and to be honest neither is pleasant. Although in Harbin you just had to add another layer to keep out the cold and you slowly turned into the Michelin Man, but if you fell over you would have a hard job getting back up because of all the clothes. It’s a good place to get fat as you can eat and eat and you are drawn to the high carb type foods. I went for 4 full days but it was an effort to get there and back, but I it was worth it. This is how I did it Bus, Train,Metro, Plane, Bus, Taxi and after about 12 hours from door to door.

Most people go here of course for the Ice Festival, which is impressive as I mentioned before, but Harbin is also famous for the Russian influences here. The architecture is very different here and there are many Russian Orthodox  Churches, the most famous being the Saint Sophia Cathedral. On my way to the airport I actually saw another amazing looking church but I will have to go next time. To be honest it was difficult to spend too much time walking around in these temperatures, this is my first real winter for nearly 15 years and the last time I felt temperatures like this would have been 1983 which was a few years ago. Scotland got hit with winds from the Arctic back then and even the sea froze on the west coast which is unheard of. But I will return one day when it’s a wee bit warmer and explore a bit more.

One thing I enjoyed was just walking along the frozen river. There wasn’t too much to see at times apart from lots of people and cars and trucks and even a mini tank, but it just felt weird to be walking down a frozen river. 

The ice sculptures that you see are really intricate and amazing, but as you walk around the city you will come across other models made from snow and ice. Even on a roundabout on the way from the airport you will find a coloured ice facade. You don’t really have to go far but it’s after dark when the colours are vibrant and come into their own. The once glass looking train is now an array of vivid colours and against the clear black sky it looks amazing.

As you walk along the street you have to be careful because there are patches of ice everywhere. Outside restaurants where water has been thrown out onto the pavement, no OH&S here you know, make for tricky navigation at times. A dam of ice built up around a storm water drain, some body has taken a leak up against a wall and the yellow ice river has formed, mind you the thought of getting your tadger out in these kind of temperatures is eye watering to say the least but some think it’s necessary. In fact as I walked along the promenade of the Songhua river on my way back to my digs on my last night I was really surprised to see one of the 5 young women walking towards me on a lower level suddenly squat down and drop her kegs to her ankles, bum hanging out and getting on with it. It’s so fuckin cold, but I guess when you have to go you have to go.

The air quality in Harbin is really bad. The pollution levels are very high and you can not only feel it in your chest as you breath but you can taste the coal dust, well that’s what I think it was. I put my scarf around my face a few times a but it soon began to get wet as my breath began to condensate on it. I got myself a proper mask to wear because I was becoming like a local and coughing up lung after lung and using most of the ground as spittoon. The mask was an improvement for a short time because soon my glasses would fog up and then the ice would begin to form on my specs, how fucked is that. I had forgotten what it was like to wear specs in the cold. As soon as you walk into a building the specs steam up and you need your guide dog to order your noodles. Even your electronics will play up here. Your phone will tell you it’s too cold and will shut down if you have it out for too long and then it too will also get covered in condensation. One place I went to escape the cold was the Maan Coffee chain where they will serve you nice waffles and a big cup of good coffee, well half decent coffee. Oh and I nearly forgot to tell you that my beard felt like it was becoming crispy at times because my breath was icing up on it but sometimes I wasn’t sure if it was my breath or snot on my top lip, either way it didn’t taste as bad as the Harbin air.

The houses here all have double glazing and my accommodation was a home-stay and very cozy indeed, in fact it was too warm. But I could easily take off all my layers and slip on a tee shirt and light pants and all was well. The other thing you will notice here is just how heavy the doors are to buildings. I entered into a bank and I really had to pull the door to get it to open, same in the coffee shop. They are built for winter or a nuclear bomb blast.

When I returned to Suzhou it was about 6c and I was walking around like it was summer. I went to the shops and everyone was wrapped up so much and here’s me strolling down the avenue with  jacket open letting the lovely warm air circulate around me, it’s amazing how quickly you can acclimatize to new surroundings. But I was glad to be back in Suzhou because the air quality is better although not the greatest, it was a lot warmer than Harbin and I was also moving house. I’ve finally got away from the dreadful apartment I have been in for nearly 4 months and I have moved into a nice modern place. I feel human again. The first thing I did was to wash Harbin from my clothes. Everything I had taken with me had to be washed and including clothes that had only come in brief contact when I packed my case to move to the new place. But it also felt that I was washing away the smells and memories from the last miserable apartment. I am very lucky that I have been given the opportunity to look after a families second home in return for teaching English and of course to some of the sarcastic Australians that I know, yes you know who you are, Scottish English is way better and you know it 🙂

So it’s a new year and there are new opportunities and if they kick off I will let you know but for now I shall say ” ta ta fur noo as am starvin”

Just to prove I can walk on water I took this GPS screen shot. Yes and I found it quite easy although I would say there was an extra nip in the air this morning. My host at my digs told me too wrap up well this morning and I did. More or less the same as last night but only one pair of thermals on my legs. 

The Songhua River is used for the ice harvesting for the ice festival. When you walk along it you can see at times the thickness of it. In fact I saw something flowing underneath at one point. 

This looked like bubbles trapped in the ice. You can see the structure of the ice and it’s fascinating. 

There were 3 guys fishing. They had cut two holes in the ice some distance apart and had managed to thread a rope through the two holes. At one end two guys slowly fed the nets through the hole. At the other hole one guy was hauling on the rope. They would have been about 30 metres apart so I’m not sure what the trick is in getting the rope threaded through the two holes. I didn’t wait to see how successful they were because when you stand still for two long you feel the cold. 

The first bridge you see here over the river is for the high speed train and I’m sure I heard the ice making a noise when one train went over head. 

There are folk walking in all different directions and believe it or not you have to watch out for cars and some of them are absolutely flying along and they won’t be able to stop in a hurry. 

I enjoyed my stroll along the river although there is a wee niggling thought that persist, the thought that the ice will crack and swallow you up. But I’m comforted by the fact that there are cars and even a truck cruising around without a care in the world. 

I went here last night and have never worn so many clothes and only just felt comfortable. Two lots of thermals on the legs and thick trousers, on my body I had two thermals and three  jackets. Two pairs of gloves and two beanies.Fuck it was cold but it was also great. I haven’t experienced these kinds of temperatures before and it’s been great but I’m not sure I could live in such a place and if I did I’d be the size of a house.

Anyway I digress, I came to see the ice sculptures and they did not disappoint. There are massive structures here and then you get the delicate ice carvings themselves.

When I arrived there were hundreds of folk, but that’s to be expected. I was surprised at how quickly we got through to buy a ticket and then into the park.  It was very well organised and there were security on hand to keep an eye on those individuals that like to jump the queue. I saw a few try and fail. It’s 330 RMB to get in which is about $60.

There are many of the larger structures that double as a kind of bobsleigh, you can buy these tiny plastic bum cheek things that you sit on to slide down some  the buildings. Mind you they don’t make them big enough for the average western arse. There would be more cheek hanging off than on.  But don’t dispair western folk you can enjoy a few big slides and they vary in size from a small dinghy to a rubber ring that you can sit your arse on.

The colours are vibrant on these buildings and it’s hard to believe that it’s all ice. The contrast between the clear black sky and the ice is great. After a while you forget about the cold and just enjoy the wonder.

I had my Fuji camera and my Samsung S5 to take the pictures. I think the phone at times is better at night as the Fuji wants to use the flash. But what I was really surprised about was that my phone switched itself off. It couldn’t handle the cold.  I started around 70% of charge on the phone and I took a few snaps and then would put the phone back in my pocket and it was happy with this but when I kept it out for about 5 mins or more it switched itself off.  I restarted it and it was at 5%. I got my charger and plugged it in but my phone told me that the battery couldn’t charge because it was too cold.  I needed my phone to get me back home to my digs so I put it into my glove and then into my pocket.

You can get the number 29 double decker bus to the festival which is convenient, getting home however is always more difficult. Especially when a few thousand people decide they want to go at the same time as you. I walked past the number 47 bus that would get me over the the city again only because the queue was as long as the horizon. Instead I headed for the main road and managed to flag down a taxi. I took my wee Samsung out from its warm glove to see whether it would give the driver the address that I needed so desperately and I’m glad to say she did. The charge was already up to 12% so I guess she was happy in my glove.

Of course when you come to Harbin this is something that you just need to do and although a little expensive it’s a great experience.

I was surprised last night to see the map on the plane telling me Harbin was further north than Vladivostok. I always thought that it was one of the coldest places on the planet and here’s me going to Harbin. 

10 am 

Day one and the house was so hot and so you don’t really know what to expect till you walk outside.  I put on the thermals of course but only one more layer under my thick jacket and so far I’ve felt ok. Mind you my ears and fingers at times are a bit chilly. You need to take off your gloves to work the phone camera and so that’s when you notice.  The phone has been ok until I went inside and it was covered in condensation and of course my specs are also steaming up when I go inside. 

It’s cold but there is no wind and it’s dry but I think tomorrow I’ll be putting on one more layer. 

Some wee fishes going for a morning swim

Eh ma boat’s stuck 

I got invited to celebrate New Year at the Hanshan Temple in Suzhou this year. My friend Lincoln represents the Suzhou Tourist Bureau and he was kind enough to invite me along with other folk from the travel industry, there was even a TV crew from Taiwan. 

First we went for dinner at a very posh restaurant, unfortunately I don’t have any pictures to share but I can assure you it was very nice and the Suzhou Mango Fish was great. I got this picture from the net. 

This along with many other dishes and even red wine. 

We got on the bus and we were off to the temple. I believe it’s been here since the Tang Dynasty, which is around 700ad.

I was lucky enough to be with two lovely girls from Beijing tourism, Wendy and Jasmine, they took me around and looked after me explaining what was going on and translating for me. 

We headed to the Pagoda with the monks so that we could hear the prayers for the New Year. 

Although I couldn’t understand a word they were saying the singing had a hypnotic effect and even although the temple was crowded it was very calm.

After about an hour the monks finished and it was not long now until the New Year and the final act was to beat the drum 108 times to get rid of all your worries and then you can start the year afresh.

12 midnight came and there was a huge cheer and so many people had their mobile phones out recording the drum beats and the count down on the screen. It seemed that this was more important for many rather than being in the moment.

No fireworks just a cheer, I guess they will make up for it on Chinese New Year in a couple of weeks. 

We all got back in the bus and were taken back to the original meeting place and I jumped on a Boris bike and cycled home through the empty streets back to my apartment, mind you there were many different folk out at 2am. There was a whole new street food thing happening. Mini restaurant’s had popped up and they were full of folk  huddling from the cold. A very different scene appears after dark, one that I hadn’t seen before because I’m in bed too early. 

So 2017 is here and the first thing I need to do is secure new accommodation which I think is near to being finalised. I’ll hopefully stay here for the year and might even go back to the UK for one of my visa runs in December.

2017 might bring new opportunities. I’m involved with one group in the making of small documentaries about Suzhou, although we are only in the planning stage. My friend Lincoln works in the Suzhou Tourist Bureau as I mentioned before and I’m hoping to get involved with them also and of course I’ll do a little English teaching too.

So in this year, which is the year of the Chicken or Rooster, be brave and take a step outside your comfort zone because you never know what might develop from that first step. 

Just Get Oot There!!!

May the best ye hae ivver seen be the warst ye’ll ivver see.
May the moose ne’er lea’ yer girnal wi a tear-drap in its ee.
May ye aye keep hail an hertie till ye’r auld eneuch tae dee.
May ye aye juist be sae happie as A wuss ye aye tae be.

An well mae yer lum reek, Orrabest fur 2017

It’s always exciting when you fly with a plane full of Chinese.  There’s always a few that don’t listen to the flight crew and I often wonder if they do things deliberately to see if they can get away with it. Turning off the mobile is traumatic for many and so when they are told to do so they will wait until caught and even then they often don’t turn it off. It’s an addiction like heroin, they need a fix and they can’t go for very long without touching, feeling and checking for that all important message about their friends dog or meal they have just had.

Seats are reclined, some are not sitting or strapped in. As the plane  begins to taxi someone tries to go to the loo. And there have been so many stories over the years like this and also about the dramas and tantrums from passengers.

In Bangkok while waiting to check in a grandmother took her grandchild and let it do the toilet into a bin and just laughed when told off by security. What would make her think that this was acceptable behaviour.

So as you can see, never a dull moment. 

Back to China yesterday from a very hot Thailand and today I wake up and it’s raining and miserable and I’ve had to dig out the thermals and put away the thongs and shorts once more. To make matters worse I’m back in my shitty cold and unhealthy shared accommodation which I will have to leave very soon. I’ve stayed in cheap hotels in Asia before but this is the only place I’ve seen a cockroach trying to flee from. It really is a fuckin miserable apartment and it only gets worse the colder it becomes outside. Simon is the guy that I rent the room from and is basic hygiene is almost non existent. He has never been taught to wash his hands after he returns from the loo. If you were to do a fecal matter swab in this place you would be hard pushed to find a clean surface. I’ve tried to educate him on some simple measures in regards to washing dishes and simple ways of keeping things clean but to no avail. So if I’m to last until my next 3 month visa trip I’m going to have to find new digs.

The thing I also find intriguing is that he has had friends over and he does not seem to be phased in the least about the state of the place and his friends don’t seem to notice either. You can live in an old house and still embrace a clean environment, but this is not something he is liable to do in a hurry. 

I walked the length of Jomtien Beach just about and there seems to be strange folk here and strange goings on . I think most of them are eastern European and there are definitely a lot of Russians. I’ve never seen so many  fat people on a beach before being loud and proud of their considerable bulk.  I was quite fascinated by them and found myself staring, mesmerised really, watching the fat wobble about when they lumbered across the sand. The stomachs of some seemed to defy gravity and looked really solid. They didn’t sag like some I saw, you know when the knees get covered. These ones would over hang from the body a good foot or more and were completely unsupported. Mind you if it was a building it would be condemned.

They stood around in groups of around two or three and sometimes there would be one on its own. But the other odd behaviour I witnessed was the way they stood with fingers spread and arms about 25° from the side of the body, there legs were also apart and it looked like legs and arms are in perfect symmetry. Their palms would be facing back and of course their bodies were oriented towards the sun. I tried to get a picture of this but it was too difficult so I hope you can understand what I’m trying to describe. A few stood very close to the water but when a small wave would approach they ran up the beach a little to get away from it.

Further along the beach I saw a similar behaviour from skinny folk.There was one guy that looked anorexic with a bald head,  he looked scary. So let’s say over a kilometer on the beach there are people standing in unison all with the strange pose and angled towards the sun just like the flowers do. Some fat and some thin and I bet you not an SPF in sight.
I might have stumbled across a cult like society or maybe they’re just fuckin weird.I’ve had a thought, maybe I could develop a platform they can either lie or stand on and it can track the sun automatically. They would be left free to either read and of course think even less. The angle the sun would strike them at would always be optimised for the best coverage. Something like a spit roast might also be an option. Instead of deck chairs we could adapt a spit rotisserie to clamp them in place for either horizontal or vertical use.

I visited Crosby beach in Merseyside UK this year and you will see statues staring out to sea and some are even in it.

https://www.visitengland.com/experience/see-antony-gormleys-sculptures-crosby-beach

Maybe this is where they have taken their inspiration from.