Ordinary Street Scenes of Harbin
by RoseAmano
Outside of the main tourist spots is a large city with lots of driving around, the typical scenes are:
1) Residential tower blocks with shops on the ground floor. Note how balconies are glass-covered all over in Northeastern Area, to me an interesting contrast with Japan where balconies are always open. Being afraid of heights standing on my own high-rise open balcony in my own home, I can understand the attraction of the covering.
2) Older slum-looking areas seen several kms along the tracks.
3) Business Districts which look bustling with corporate logo of foreign capital companies.
4) The "New Development District" on the outskirts of Harbin upon a nice road with adverts for IT, pharmaceutical, manufacturing companies and the like.
5) Modern-looking shopping centres. (Though, I'm told by a local that the quality of fresh produce and meats can vary wildly even among different locations of the same particular international chain!! I guess the distribution quality control and standardisation is one of the growing pains in establishing new business in a new market.)
Unit 731 Museum
by calcaf38
It is a bitter, heartbreaking irony that the Harbin area, a refuge for the Jews, was also the epicenter of the horrific Japanese holocaust.
In Pingfang, one hour away from Harbin, in a huge secret facility, perverted Japanese doctors, soldiers and civilians performed abominable experiments in biochemical warfare. The cruelty of some of hese actions is hard to believe.
Westerners know too little of this page of WWII. It is their duty, should they visit Harbin, to visit the admirable Unit 731 Museum in Pingfang. The whole exhibit is clearly explained in English.
Germanic?
by John195123 about Bavaria
At least from the name I assume that this is a German or Bavarian-influenced place. It seems like a American west bar in external decor.
An it is western, with oddly cumbersome forks. I'd say the place is like a brewery, but the beer I had was both flat and seemingly unfinished in its fermentation. Maybe it was the time of day, maybe they don't do beer very well, maybe it's the way they do beer there, maybe the gringo asked for beer, it's not ready, but he wants one.
We walked in and a hostess seated us. Then a waitress and a guy who seemed like a manager came up to us and told us that we had to go back out to the entryway to pay... why they didn't have us do that on the way in, I cannot say. Regardless, once we paid and ordered our drinks, we went to the buffet, which seemed to be the vegetable side of the restaurant, with squash soup, green beans and other cooked vegetables, as well as desserts laid out. As we sat and ate, a guy with two sword-like stakes came by and shaved off various meats for us, fried fat, chicken hearts, tongue. Very greasy meats, but quite good.
The waitress began removing serving spoons from the buffet about midway through the meal. I couldn't tell if that meant that they were gearing up for the dinner rush (went went at about 3pm) or what. They didn't remove the food, and the manager had just relit the sterno for us... after we got food... a little too late, but a nice thought... warm up the MSG...
We gathered from various words and pointings that we couldn't revisit the buffet for some reason, aside from the desserts. So we hit up the desserts and left, hoping that the next time we go will provide a bit better experience.
Overall, the food is pretty good, though the beer was flat and not at its best. Two people at the buffet and for the meat, with a beer cost about 42 or 46 yuan.
Blues Bar
by SLM73
This place is a must see on anyone's nightlife list for Harbin. It is essentially a Russian style disco with chinese DJ's. the DJ's really know how to get the crowd jumping and what I love most of all, they have two poles on a stage for drunken revellers. The bar has two floors and the mezzanine level is great for checking out the dancers below. The local beer is cheap and I suggest buying a jug between one or two of you rather than a single beer each. A Heinekin was 40Y for a bottle. You can buy snacks like popcorn and this is really popular with Chinese people. The place gets pretty full on the weekends and usually expats visiting from elsewhere in China end up here on their night out. There is no cover charge and you can leave your jacket for free. The funniest thing about going here in winter is that in the coat room everyone is stripping off their long johns and boots and putting on their dancing gear. Periodically some Russian dancers will put on a bit of a show and this is a real eye opener. Discos in Harbin tend to be a little like a high school disco and some will even stop towards the end of the night for a game or two on the dancefloor.
Ha'er'bin
by Katie&Jordi
Haerbin is a city famed for its annual Winter Lantern Festival or Ice Festival. It's far up North in China, bordering Russia. It doesn't only share a border, but the cold winter as well.
We had a glimpse at a different side of Haerbin, a warmer side: during summer, Harbin has a lot to offer, with beautiful remains of its Russian past in forms of cobblestone streets and traditional buildings. The Chinese have added a nice riverside promenade. So, visiting this city at the right time of the year (summer) allows you to enjoy it all.
Haerbin is supposed to get very crowded during the Winter Festival, and we have heard that, in case you want to see it, it is better to do it right before it begins officially.
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Photograph on dispaly in St Sophia's
Lotsa poo
Portman's Bar
Me on the horse carriage
