Touristy things to do

[bickcam]

Hi - I have two visitors here from Australia who have two days to kill in Harbin. They really want to see some sculptures but the ice festival hasn't started yet, I thought there was an indoor place somewhere? Does anyone know or have any ideas?

Thanks Beck

[andysun731]

There is a snow sculpture of PSY near the Central Avenue(中央大街). PSY is the Korean singer who sings Gangnam Style, very popular this year.

The 19th National Snow Sculpture Competition began on the Sun Island(太阳岛) the day before yesterday, and will end tomorrow. There should be some snow sculptures now. Ice lamps in the Ice and Snow World(冰雪大世界) near the Sun Island are not completed yet. So you can only see the construction process of colorful ice lamps from the street outside at night, but it's really cold recently.

Besides, I recommend the local dish GuoBao Meat(锅包肉), which will not taste good outside HeiLongJiang Province.

[WestTexas]

锅包肉 tastes plenty good in Jilin province.

When I went to Harbin in the winter, there was an ice slide next to the flood control monument, the big pillar thing at the end of the pedestrian street next to the river. It was 10 yuan to ride, very large, and very fun. I don't know if it will be done yet, but the flood control monument is still something most people that go to Harbin will see. You can also walk around on the frozen river and take dog sleds. I think people from Australia would probably like to see a frozen river. Being from Texas, I'd never seen such a large body of water frozen, so I liked seeing it.

Besides that, you can go to the Siberian tiger park, which different people tend to rate as either (A)thrilling(B)dangerous or ©depressing. They drive you around in a jeep through a park with like 150 tigers. You can buy chickens to put on the roof of the jeep and the tigers will jump on the jeep to eat them off.

There is an incredibly delicious Russian restaurant close to the Flood Control Monument. It is not super expensive and seems pretty authentic: Almost all the customers are Russian. I can't really give you concrete information on the name or location, but it is on the right of the flood control monument, facing the river, in a little row of shops next to the river. The sign is in Russian and the menu is only in Russian and Chinese. Try the cabbage rolls, borsht, pickled mushrooms, or anything else with some Russian beer and a glass of vodka.

[andysun731]

JiLin abuts on HeiLongJiang, so it's possible that 锅包肉 there tastes the same as in HeiLongJiang. But in other places it may not taste the same good. My friends told me that so-called 锅包肉 tastes very strange in LiaoNing Province and in BeiJing.

[WestTexas]

yeah, in Liaoning the sauce is more like McDonalds ketchup. Very sweet, red goo. Not good.

[andysun731]

When the sauce is ketchup, we call the dish 樱桃肉(Cherry Meat), not 锅包肉. The genuine sause of 锅包肉 is made from sugar and vinegar. 锅包肉 was invented in Qing dynasty catering for both Chinese and Russians. So maybe that's why it's still very popular with foreigners now.