Harbin experiences little ice in winter.

Every winter, dozens of workers in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, brave the biting cold to extract ice from the Songhua River. These ice blocks are the main material for the giant ice sculptures at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival – an event that attracts millions of visitors every year.

Harbin's 5th annual Ice Harvest Festival began on December 7th, attracting numerous visitors with its traditional rituals and performances. The event marks the start of the annual ice and snow festival season. The world's largest ice sculpture festival will officially open in January 2025.

However, this year's autumn in Heilongjiang lasted longer, and the warm weather caused the river to freeze later and the ice layer to be thinner than in previous years.

"Every year at the end of December, the ice is usually about 57-58 cm thick, but this year it's only about 44-45 cm thick," said Huang Wu, 52, who has over 20 years of experience cutting ice in Harbin.

He remarked that the weather this year is warmer than usual. Normally, daytime temperatures in Harbin at the end of December are around minus 20 degrees Celsius. This year, this temperature wasn't recorded until midnight.

Hoang Vu said that every December, he and his group of eight colleagues, who are fishermen, temporarily set aside their fishing profession and switch to breaking ice when the Songhua River freezes over.

Icebreakers like Hoang Vu typically wear life vests and knee-high boots, standing in rows on the snow-covered river, waiting for a team member's countdown signal to simultaneously break through blocks of ice exactly 1.6 meters long.

Each block of ice cut to the correct size is paid 2 yuan (approximately 700 VND). Huang Yu's team can extract up to 2,700 blocks of ice in 16 hours and share the income equally.

The thinner ice layer on the Songhua River has affected the income of the workers. "The thicker the ice, the more money we earn," Huang said.

Ice blocks harvested from the Songhua River.

After being cut, the ice blocks are transported uphill by motorized vehicles and loaded onto forklifts, then moved to the festival area about a 5-minute drive from the Songhua River.

The ice sculptures at the Harbin Ice Lantern Festival have become iconic, making it a popular tourist destination. Giant blocks of ice are sculpted into structures such as colossal palaces, three-colored snowflakes, or depictions of the terracotta army from the Qin Dynasty. These structures are further enhanced with colored lights, illuminating them at night.

Mr. Chu, a resident of Harbin, said that although the work of breaking ice is hard and involves enduring harsh weather, it is still better than sitting at home with no income in the winter.

"In Harbin during the freezing season, there isn't much work available. Thanks to this job, I earn about 260 yuan (approximately 900,000 VND) per 8-hour shift," Mr. Chu said.

HQ (according to VnExpress)

Source: https://baohaiduong.vn/mua-dong-it-bang-o-cap-nhi-tan-401609.html