Harbin Off The Beaten Path

4 more images

Unit 731 was a section of the Japanese army in World War Two which did experimental research on germ warfare. The facility was outstanding in their use of LIVE, HEALTHY HUMAN BODIES for experiments which were referred to as "maruta" -- literally meaning "logs". In a manner common to Japanese military throughout Asia then, what happened here could only be described as inhumane, atrocious, barbaric, selfish, merciless... the list goes on.
For example, to investigate whether horse blood could be used as a substitute for human blood, they would transfuse horse blood directly into the subject's body -- thereby coming to the conclusion that a transfusion of 400 ml of horse blood would be sufficient to kill the subject very painfully. To find out more about the results of frostbite, subjects were stripped naked and tied securely outdoors in the freezing cold (Harbin experiences winter conditions of around -30 degrees Celsius!), doused with water and basically left to freeze to death. These are only 2 of the unthinkably cruel experiments awaiting the helpless victims.
This facility had their own private railway to deliver fresh maruta specimens to them. I would describe it as the "Taklamakan Railway": go in and never come out.
As the Japanese realised they were losing the war, they tried to destroy all the evidence of their heinous crimes at this base, but failed to do a thorough job. Many of the officers who had worked at this facility returned to Japan after the war and took up well-respected and high-paying jobs due to their invaluable and unique knowledge in this field -- gained only through the deaths of countless innocent civilians! What a hypocrisy!
I have been here twice, and both times I have been horrified to tears.
There are too few who know of these horrors. We should never forget, nor should we forgive. Please visit, if only to pay some respects to those who died screaming for someone to help them out of their suffering and agony. YOU WILL BE MOVED.
Admission 20 RMB, or 10 RMB if you have a student card.

2 more images

At some time between the departure of the last Jews after WWII and the modern cosy-toesy relations between China and Israel, the old Jewish cemetery was relocated to a beautiful, peaceful spot.

A great effort is made to honor those dead, and to help the descendants find their Harbin ancestors.

Many of the tombstones appear to have been vandalized at some point, however, with little enameled portraits destroyed or scratched. The impression is infinitely sad.

The modern cemetery is a good hour drive away. Make sure your driver understands where you want to go before you depart.

4 more images

Though the Japanese Kanto military controlled the Northeast from 1931, most would not have been aware of covert Special Forces Military Unit 731 (also called the Ishii Military Unit). Senior members included elite researchers of the day, and included germ warfare research, and non-consentual human experiments in the name of medical research upon around 3000 Chinese, Korean and Russian people.

New prisoners healthy enough to test were referred to as "logs", partly to deny the humanity of intended victims, also as a code name for classified communications. Explicitly, experiments included forcible frostbite in -30 degree winter, raising rodents and fleas for disease spreading and incubation, in-vivo dissections, etc.

At war's end, Ishii ordered to blast the facilities, execute remaining "logs" and low-rank staff, and forced confidentiality agreements upon subordinates. Some 731 staff later held as POW confessed to Soviets who requested this episode to stand trial at Tokyo Far East Military Tribunals (footage now on DVD with Jpn. and Eng., soon in Chinese). This never did stand trial, and the Americans handled it secretly by having Ishii report the research in exchange for pardon. Other participants resumed post-military careers in civilian life.

One of the exhibition rooms contains confessional video and writings by some former Japanese participants. The Jpn. general public never heard of Unit 731 until circa 1980; the relative lack of common knowledge is one of the sticky points still affecting Sino-Japan relations today. For now, what *is* Jpn. common knowledge concerning wartime atrocities committed by Imperialist Army are those against their own people, remembered today at Himeyuri Memorial in Okinawa, where over 200 Japanese High School girls died after being illegally used on the battlefield.

Located about 20km south of central Harbin in Pingfang, there is guided tour in your language where possible. No photography inside. Built-in glassed georamas of grey clay illustrate crimes against humanity.

They have a Tigers only Zoo here. It is a drive thru type (Their Bus). A Tiger only zoo with on or two Lions, go figure, Hey its China. They also have a Liger or a Tion not sure which it is. Just know its half Tiger, half Lion.

If you are not so blood thirsty like you average local don't buy the live chickens/rabbits if you are not prepared to set them loose in a field full of hungry Tigers. Gruesome...

If you are down at Stalin Park or the Flood Control Monument and it is getting just too cold to stay out, then there is an interesting little place you can go to arm up get a cup of tea or coffee and see one of Harbin's least known sites.
In the lobby of the Gloria Inn hotel (a 4-star place) just diagonally opposite the Flood Control Monument, is a huge water feature suspended from the ceiling.
Basically a series of ornate bowls (perhaps 30 of them?) curve around the long lobby, eventually spiralling down to a small pool. The water pours from one to the other, all the way down.
Now this is the kind of thing you might see in Shanghai, but it is yet another sign that under the surface in Harbin, there is an artist trying to get out!

The ice sculptures are not the only works of art along Zhongyang Dajie. The city has put a lot of whimsical statues along the street of Zhingyang Dajie, usually in the entrances to side streets. These are fairly common outside China, but the concept of human-scale statues is new to China, and they are cropping up in many cities. It seems to bring in a refreshing feeling that the cities are for people, and that art does not have to be monumental in scale.
It was particularly nice to see these statues and scultures in Harbin: they made the streets seem that much warmer.

While the Heilongjiang Provincial Museum is managed badly, and is basically a disgrace,the aquarium in the basement is worth visiting and our kids enjoyed it.
The first part of the aquarium is laid out as a series of pools in a number of landscaped caverns. These first rooms show a lot of fishes native to Heilongjiang rivers. Their are descriptive panels in Chinese, but they also have Latin names as well, so if you know your fish you should be able to work out what is what.
Some of these river and lake fish grow to incredible sizes.
The tanks are large and look well maintained.
Later there is a big walk-through marine aquarium, with the obligatory sharks and rays, which are less common in Heilongjiang (given that it has no sealine).
The whole visit is only marginally spoilt by the display of performing seals in a tiny, tiny pool. People around the world have simply recognised that getting animals to perform is unnatural, cruel and a pretty pathetic reflection on those who arrange it. China just seems to be slow getting into synch as the rest of the world moves along the civilization curve, in this respect.

On a shelf at the Russian Cafe (separate review) is a little framed plaque mentioning the Museum of Russian Life. We asked where it was and were given a vague description of a street nearby. Sadly, we never found the museum, despite looking quite hard. No-one else had even heard of the place.

As Russians and Russian life from a substantial part of Harbin's history, this would seem to be a really interesting place to see.

So once again, the inability of organizations and tourism marketing authorities in China to do their job properly means less money for the city. It is a permanent source of frustration in China how difficult it is to see and find places, even those that are ON the beaten track. This madness must be costing China's economy millions of dollars a year.