1. First impressions of Harbin

Shanghai in early July. I handed in the first draft of my dreaded senior thesis and started planning my next trip. My friend JZ, who is studying at HIT, has been calling me to Harbin since the beginning of this year, so I also set this trip early in my heart. Going to Heilongjiang in summer to see the forests and lakes on the vast land was the initial expectation of my trip. The trip was originally planned to run east from Harbin to Hengdaohezi, Mudanjiang, Jingpo Lake and Suifenhe before returning to Harbin. The subsequent trip to Mohe was completely out of the original plan, due to my improvised ideas.

On the afternoon of July 19, the plane flew from Pudong to Harbin. I remember looking out of the porthole at the northeast Plain as the plane was about to descend -- a vast expanse of green fields stretching out to the horizon. When I arrived in Harbin, the weather was unexpectedly hot, and the real-time weather in the mobile phone showed that the highest temperature in Harbin in the afternoon was 33 degrees, which was comparable to the Jiangnan area. Locals are saying that this summer is the hottest on record, and many people in the circle of friends are asking: "Who knows the air conditioning master?" Harbin welcomed me, a southern traveler from Northeast China who grew up in Hainan, on a rare humid, muggy day.

At a KFC near Harbin Railway Station, I met my friend JZ and my new friend HY, who had come from Shenyang especially for the trip east. After unloading our bags at the Ibis hotel, JZ began to guide us through the city streets surrounding HIT. The city of Harbin is unfolding slowly in front of us. I was initially struck by the richness of the city's historic architecture, hidden in the streets and alleys by the pale yellow Russian buildings that remind visitors of the city's rich past. Harbin arose from the construction of the Middle East railway in the 1910-20s of the last century, when the Russians modeled the urban planning of Paris to design the city, until today, walking in the quiet alleys of Harbin, you can still feel the historical legacy of the urban planning.

JZ took us to a place where his mentor often dined, the Old Russian House Western restaurant near Manzhouli Street. Just approached, I was amazed by this century-old building, the appearance of light yellow color is very mild, the entire building layout is exquisite, in the summer of green trees, especially beautiful. The interior of the building is also well laid out, with beautiful lighting and fine paintings on the walls, and dining here is like stepping into a Russian movie set, as if you were in Europe.

After dinner, we went for a walk on the Central Street, walked to the Sophia Cathedral, and walked to the embankment of the Songhua River where the flood control monument is located. Harbin is very busy at night in summer, and the central Street is not only filled with tourists, but also many locals who come out to cool off at night. Along the Songhua River, there are many folk singers singing at the top of their voices. Walking on the railway bridge, an important facility of the Middle East railway at that time, you can truly feel the vastness of the Songhua River.

A traffic sign on a street in Harbin

On the street, you can see the church that was built by the Russians, and the sense of history hits you

In the sunshine, the exquisite carvings of old buildings tell the history of the city silently

The evening dining place, near Manzhouli Street in the old Russian building Western restaurant, the seats outside the balcony on the second floor can be said to be quite exquisite, the old Russian building Western restaurant appearance, the restaurant interior furnishings, like a movie scene in general. The interior of the old Russian building Western restaurant, the lighting is very exquisite and beautiful. Exquisite lamps and paintings in the western restaurant of the old Russian building. The food is full of Russian style, this is the Russian specialty bread Lev.

On the balcony of the old building on the Central Street, there are often classical music performances here in the summer evening, and the artistic atmosphere of Harbin city comes to your face

The landmark of Harbin and the spiritual soul of the city, Sophia Cathedral. Sofia Cathedral at night. Inside Sofia Cathedral, where local painter Wang Huandi's Harbin "City Memory" watercolor exhibition is being held. The facilities inside the church are no longer there, but the mottled walls are still preserved, and through these mottled traces, you can glimpse a little of Harbin's history...

2. Harbin's variety of styles
On the morning of our second day in Harbin, our friend JZ led us to the Harbin Grand Theatre on the other side of the Songhua River. This white tone for the background of the grand theater with a modern sense of streamlined structure, CNN praised as "and the Sydney Opera House" the same name of the theater. Although the theater is not open at the time of going, you can climb the steps of the theater and overlook the scenery on both sides of the Songhua River on the top floor.

After coming down from the Harbin Grand Theater, we walked north to the Harbin Cultural Center Wetland Park. The wetland park in summer, with lush water plants, lush trees, and the reflection of the bridge on the river during the flight of water birds, is so similar to a Russian movie I saw earlier, "True Love Journey". It was also here, seeing the trees and wetlands of the North, that I conceived the idea of going north to Mohe alone.

In the afternoon, I walked in the Zhonghua Baloch Art Block outside the road. The architecture here is very special, the exterior is ornate baroque style, and the inner courtyard is Siheyuan. Some of the buildings on the streets outside the road, such as purification hospital, Central Asia Gold Bank, have a hundred years of history, and now the gorgeous appearance is still vaguely visible, but also because of the mottled traces of decay and let people sigh that time is the biggest master.

In the evening, we took a taxi to Qunli Wetland Park in the west of the city. This is the back garden of Harbin, with a large wetland and a very open landscape. It was just before sunset, and the light red sky stood out as the evening sun set in the west. I happened to see a child overlooking the red sunset, and this picture gave me a lot of reverie. The combination of wetland and sunset landscape, it is the first time to see. The wetland park with a wide view, due to the rising water level of the Songhua River this summer, many lands in the wetland park have been submerged.

3. Yokodokazi: A Russian town left in memory

On the third day of our trip, we set out from Harbin to the east and took the K-top green leather car over several hills to Mudanjiang. On the way through a small town called Yokodo River. The town is located in the middle of a mountain valley, the temperature is several degrees lower than the surrounding area, and it is more prone to heavy snow in winter. It's a lost town that became a choke point more than a hundred years ago at the beginning of the 20th century due to the construction of the Middle East railway, when a large number of Russians lived here. Today, more than 200 Russian-style buildings are still intact here, and the pattern of the whole town is basically the same as that of the year, and the locomotive depot and Orthodox church built by the Russians are still intact. Here, you can revisit the memories of a town's past. During our visit, we found that the local tourism is being revitalized, the visitor center is being built with great fanfare, and the Russian chalets are being repainted, many of which will become future farmhouse hotels. Now this quiet town is closer to what it once was.

On July 21, at seven o 'clock in the morning, we caught the train from Harbin to Hengdaohezi. Harbin Railway Station retains the style of the Art Nouveau movement, and at dawn, the sun shines on the train from the east, which has a unique beauty.

We took the train from Hailar to Mudanjiang. The conductor of our train was a bespectacled, shaved twenty-three or four years old, younger than I was. From chatting with him, it can be found that he has a very clear understanding of his work and his situation.

Yokohezi Railway Station, it is one of the few Middle Eastern railway stations to remain today. Typical Russian style. According to Lonely Planet Northeast, this train station is a strong contender for the most beautiful train station in China.


Yokodo River town view. It does have the illusion of being in a small European town.

Flowers planted outside a house in Hengdaohezi town. The wooden structure of the Russian Orthodox church is now closed due to external repairs. Hengdao Hezi town street scene. Locals are repainting their wooden houses and a wave of tourism is in full swing. I found signs of how people had lived before. On the wall was a worn and yellowed newspaper, which, on closer inspection, was dated July 1998. The old newspapers on the wooden house, they are the witnesses of the past. The reflection in the window of a Russian wooden house.



The center of the Yokodo River, panoramic view of the Russian street.

At four o 'clock in the afternoon, we arrived at Mudanjiang Railway Station. Northeast China is experiencing one of the hottest summers on record, with daytime temperatures approaching 35 degrees in Mudanjiang. Although it was still blue skies and white clouds when we arrived at the station, as soon as we stayed in the hotel, there was a roar of thunder and it began to rain heavily. After the heavy rain, riding a small blue electric car, to the downtown Yalu River hotel dinner, a more characteristic Korean food, the price is also affordable. Kidney beans, a type of bean that I've never had before, taste really, really good.

4. An unforgettable night in Jingpo Lake
Jingpo Lake is my Heilongjiang trip to the earliest confirmed punch point. An article in the second volume of the fourth grade of the primary school Chinese edition, "The Spectacle of Jingpo Lake," makes us familiar with this place since the generation after 90. This time to Jingpo Lake, read a lot of introductions in the travel guide in advance, know that its characteristics are volcanic barrier lakes, and when we really arrived here, this scene, or beyond expectations...

From Mudanjiang to Jingpo Lake, there are two modes of transportation. One is from Mudanjiang bus station to Tokyo City, and then transfer from there; The other is to take the train, take the Tokyo town and then change to the Jingpo Lake bus.

Interestingly, the train fare from Mudanjiang to Tokyo is only 6 yuan, which is a special train for the country's subsidized rural areas, and there are more than 80 trains in the country. It was the cheapest train I've ever taken.
Views of the lower reaches of Mudan River along the way

Stone Station, a funny name for a train station. Here we often see special trains carrying grain, and there are skilled workers in the operation of the machine, and one grain truck is quickly filled.

The minibus was carrying about 20 people in the countryside of northeast China. This is Heilongjiang's true countryside. The green rice fields on both sides have entered the harvest season. At this time, we knew that the north gate of Jingpo Lake Scenic area was temporarily closed for maintenance, and our farmhouse was in the north gate (most hotels and inns are near the North gate). Vehicles are only allowed to park at the east gate and enter and exit through the east gate. The north gate and the east gate are 15 kilometers apart, which is too far. At a loss, I did not expect that after entering the scenic area, a warm local woman accosted us and introduced us to a hotel named Xinyi Hotel. 270 a night, three for one, that's not bad. So we agreed. At the hotel, the view is better than expected, and the hotel room Windows face the lake. Looking at the calm lake, I suddenly understand why this place has been a famous health resort since the founding of the People's Republic. The geographical location of the hotel is indeed good, next to the Heilongjiang General Trade Union staff recuperation hospital.

The view of Jingpo Lake from the hotel

In order to save the cost of sightseeing tickets (90 scenic tickets, each sightseeing bus needs to buy another ticket, 10-20 yuan), we decided to walk to the Villa pier and the waterfall. The whole journey is about 5 kilometers, the trees all the way are obscuring the sun, and the walking experience on the wooden plank road is excellent. If you take a comfortable air-conditioned sightseeing car, you will have less interest in walking.

The best viewing spot of Jingpo Lake Villa Pier is 【 Medicine Temple 】. I'm glad we found this treasure trove of viewing spots. Because the road is far, there are few tourists here, they can stand on the ancient temple quietly enjoy the scenery and take photos. On the one hand, the ancient temple is located on a peninsula that extends into the lake, so you can enjoy the lake view from the north, west and south sides, which is rare; Secondly, because the height of the ancient temple building is just right, after climbing the steps, you can see the entire lake scenery. Perhaps because the latitude is relatively high, the altitude Angle of the afternoon sun is relatively low, the sunlight reflects a long shadow on the lake, and the shadow of the trees is also very long, and the high-latitude lake has a different aesthetic feeling from the southern lake.

Jingpo Lake at four o 'clock in the afternoon.Pharmacist ancient temple distant view of two boats crossing, the scene is extremely vivid.

After visiting the villa pier, due to the exhaustion of physical strength on foot, had to take the sightseeing car to the hanging water floor waterfall. Diaoshuilou Waterfall is the most essential place in the whole scenic spot. Unlike other waterfalls, Diaoshuilou Waterfall is located in the volcanic lava landform area, which is surrounded by dark basalt rock.

Hanging water floor waterfall is extremely magnificent, water like white practice down, the sound is very loud, can be described as magnificent. The surface of the lake above the falls is like a mirror, reflecting a wonderful mountain view. Below the waterfall is a green pool with distinctive trees on both sides and a narrow volcanic stone canyon in the distance. In that year, China National Geographic Beauty pageant China special selection of the most beautiful waterfall in China, Diaoshuilou Waterfall stood out in the list, because its combination landscape is indeed unique, it can be described as rare in China.

Follow the river to the lower reaches of the Diaoshuilou Waterfall, just in time for sunset. The setting sun is gradually setting, sprinkling colorful colors to the clouds on both sides of the Diaoshuilou Waterfall. The moon rises in the east. With the mirror-like river and rocks, it is truly a national park-like landscape.

Returning to the hotel from the Diaoshuilou Waterfall, the road passes the remains of a lava flow from 10,000 years ago. Who would have thought that after 10,000 years, there would still be no vegetation here? Here is a natural geopark, the landscape can be described as amazing.

The moon rose. The night at Jingpo Lake made us ecstatic. Because the lake is calm, the moonlight can illuminate the lake extremely bright. Coupled with the lakeshore trees, it can be described as a beautiful artistic conception, reminding people of Zhang Ruoxu's poem: The river is swirling around the Fang Dian, the moon shines like the flower forest.

The hotel has specially set up a large terrace with tables and chairs for visitors to enjoy the lake view. The wine we bought in Mudanjiang city came in handy, and the man walking by said: You are really romantic!

Jingpo Lake, moonlight, drink a cup. There's wine, there's friends, there's moonlit lake views, Jupiter and Saturn rising in the east. HY and JZ students are feeling, this situation is worth the trip, is an unforgettable night.

The next day, our schedule was changed. The original plan to go to Jingpo Lake Canyon, or farther crater Forest park (the Chinese class also wrote this paragraph), but because the north gate is closed, the traffic to the other side can only take a detour from the east gate, it is not cost-effective. In addition, we have to go to the next stop in Suifenhe City in the afternoon, so we had to temporarily change our plan and return to the villa pier by boat. The price of the cruise ticket is 100 yuan, which is too expensive. The whole trip is one and a half hours, in the middle of which you can look at the lake and the scenery on both sides, and the boat broadcast repeatedly introduces [Maogong Mountain] to tourists, which is the mark of the historical era left by the lake. Looking at both sides of the lake, it is indeed like what the text said, the mountain island is Zhi, beautiful.

Because we had to get to Suifenhe in the afternoon, we had to leave Jingpo Lake at noon with some reluctance. The way back is also by bus first, and then by the 6 yuan train. When the car was racing on the field, I saw the shadow of Jingpo Lake on the map of the fog of the world gradually walking away, and the scenery was still in my heart.