Long Qing Gorge Ice Festival

My recent blog posts have been a bit heavy on the domestic side (Thomas, shopping, pollution), so it's time for another peek into China. Sort of.

Just a few weeks ago we went to the Long Qing Gorge Ice Festival. Think massive ice structures, big enough to walk around in. I didn't quite know what to expect, but it was excellent. A bit crazy perhaps, definitely weird, also quite tacky, but worth the 1.5 hour drive up north.

Slides carved out in the ice brought fun for the older kids!

Ice sculptures.

What's this guy from Arlington, VA doing in Long Qing?

Crazy ice temple.

Big enough for a 3rd Grader.

Big enough for a 3rd grader and his brother.

Big enough for the whole crazy family. (My hoodie was tied with a knot and I could not get it off. I think I look like a crazy little-blue-riding-hood.)

How's this for an ice sculpture? You say you built a snowman? I say I just built the entire Forbidden City and more. Look at the woman in the foreground for a sense of scale.

It's pretty much a city with electricity and lights. In Spring there will be running water. Notice again the size of the people compared to the ice sculptures.

Attention for detail.

It's the Year of the Dragon after all.

The ice sculpture maker got a bit lazy I think. This is just fabric, but it looked awesome. It's the face of a character in the Chinese Opera.

In het nederlands: dit zijn fotos van een bezoekje aan het Long Qing ijsfestival. Je loopt buiten - al is het overdekt met doek en lichtjes - en bekijkt en kruipt in allerlei ijsstructuren. Al met al een beetje bizar, maar wel heel leuk! Je moet toch wat in die lange winter in Beijing...