This Ice Festival in China Is a Dazzling Multi-colored Dream

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There's an icy winter wonderland in Harbin, the capital of the northernmost—and coldest—province in China.

The city hosts an annual celebration, the International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, where ice sculptors compete to create more and more elaborate buildings of ice, all illuminated in multi-colored lights.

Preparations for the event begin months in advance, with workers digging huge ice blocks from the frozen Songhua River. The massive festival has several themed zones, and the main attraction is the Harbin Ice and Snow World, which covers more than 750,000 square meters and features up to 300,000 cubic meters of ice and snow.

While impressive in daylight, the show really gets going at night, when the large-scale ice structures are illuminated by technicolor LED lighting.

The festival officially opened January 5, and typically runs through late February. Over one million visitors are expected to attend this year.

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Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival

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A candy cane ice sculpture on view at the Ice and Snow World at the festival in Harbin.

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Fireworks illuminate the night sky marking the opening of the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival to celebrate the new year.

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Over one million visitors are expected to attend the popular event.

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A cat sculpture constructed of ice blocks illuminated by fireworks at the opening ceremonies.

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Detail of giant colored ice crystals at the festival.

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The Festival, established in 1985, is held annually and lasts for over one month.

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Visitors watch fireworks at the opening ceremony of the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival in China.

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A view of structures built of ice during the opening night of the annual tourist attraction.

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An overview of the Harbin Ice and Snow World, in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

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A woman takes a photo as she visits an igloo illuminated by green hued lights at the festival.

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Visitors take a selfie at the Ice and Snow Festival in Harbin.

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This year the park covers about 800,000 square meters. About 330,000 cubic meters of ice and snow were used to create the sculptures.

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Animal forms being carved out of ice at the festival.

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The 2017 Harbin Ice and Snow World began trial operations December 21, which has attracted tens of thousands of tourists to take pictures here.

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A view of structures built of ice during the opening night of the annual tourist attraction.

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Ice temples illuminated by colored lights at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival to celebrate the new year in China.

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A floating orb design centerpiece at the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival.

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People visit ice sculptures illuminated by colored lights at the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival to celebrate the new year.

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Opening night of Ice and Snow World in Harbin, China.

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Tourists visit ice sculptures illuminated by colored lights during the opening ceremony of the Ice and Snow World as part of the 33rd Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival in China.

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A reindeer roams the Harbin Ice and Snow Festival.

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Workers use saws to dig big ice blocks from the frozen Songhua River in Harbin. The ice blocks are then transported to the festival areas.

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A view of the almost completed construction of the Ice and Snow World Park in mid-December.

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Swimmers dive into a pool cut from the frozen riverbank as part of a winter swimming competition during the Harbin Ice and Snow festival.

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A participant carves an ice sculpture during a national ice sculpture contest.

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Artists carve the 103-meter-long snow sculpture "Long Song" for the Harbin International Snow Sculpture Art Expo at Sun Island in the Heilongjiang Province of China.

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