Frozen Songhua River in Harbin draws crowds for ice-and-snow-themed amusements
Wire desk byline Sourced from Xinhua, Dawn, Arab News, Anadolu and Minute Mirror. Translated and abridged by the GSRRA Desk.
A drone photo taken on Jan. 9, 2026 shows people participating in a “dragon boat” competition on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Photo by Liu Yang/Xinhua)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists pose for photos on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists ride snow motorbike on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists pose for photos on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
A tourist poses for photos on horseback on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
People view a robotic dog on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
A child plays on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
A child rides sled pulled by a robotic dog on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
A child rides sled pulled by a robotic dog on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 11, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists dance on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Tourists play on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
A tourist plays a “water to ice” stunt by splashing water into the cold air on the frozen surface of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, Jan. 10, 2026. The surface of the Harbin section of Songhua River, now solidly frozen, serves as a “fun field,” where locals and tourists alike enjoy themselves with ice-and-snow-themed amusements. (Xinhua/Wang Jianwei)
Reference Link:- https://english.news.cn/20260111/cbdc1e631ca14dea9d37a8cb8d2343d1/c.html
Zamir Ahmed Awan is the founder and Chair of the Global Silk Route Research Alliance, a think tank in Islamabad. He studied engineering at Shanghai University in the 1980s, and years later he went back to China as Pakistan's science counsellor in Beijing, from 2010 until 2016, working on science and higher education cooperation between the two countries.…
