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.