In Pictures: Enormous snow sculptures at Harbin International Ice and Snow festival

The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival starts on January 5 every year and lasts one month.

In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists work on snow sculptures at the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival in Harbin, Heilongjiang province, China. Reuters

The Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, the largest ice and snow festival in the world, is an annual winter festival that takes place with a theme in Harbin, Heilongjiang, China.

Initially, the festival participants were mainly Chinese but now it has become an international festival and competition. The festival starts on January 5 every year and lasts one month. However, sometimes the exhibition opens before that time and stay longer, depending on the weather condition.

During the festival, two main exhibitions are held in two different areas: Sun Island and Ice and Snow World. The Sun Island is a recreational area that is situated on the opposite side of the Songhua River from the city. It features an expo of enormous snow sculptures.

Ice and Snow World, an area open at night, features illuminated full size buildings, which are made from blocks of 2–3' thick ice taken directly from the Songhua River.

In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists and workers prepare ice and snow sculptures. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
An artist polishes an ice sculpture. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Workers pull a giant ice cube out of the frozen Songhua River as they extract ice to make sculptures. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists and workers prepare an ice sculpture. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
A snow sculpture is seen. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
A snow sculpture is seen. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists prepare a snow sculpture for the upcoming Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists and workers prepare ice and snow sculptures. Reuters
In Pictures: It's snow time! Chinese city glitters at Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival
Artists and workers prepare ice and snow sculptures. Reuters

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