I’ve been in Harbin about 24 hours now, and here are some quick first impressions and thoughts.

-Everything here is extremely cheap, even for China.  Last night I stayed in a small hotel for 20 RMB (about $3 USD).  I had a tidy single room, with TV and fan, plus a clean bathroom with 24 hour hot water, shower, and a western toilet.  I was totally stoked by this find…until I got an 18 RMB half-hour massage and realized I could have just slept at the massage place and saved my 20 RMB I paid for the hotel room.    

-People here are big–taller, stronger, and wider than your average Chinese.  No doubt an influence of all the Mongol and Manchu blood mixed in with the Han here. No wonder Dongbei guys have the impression of being 很男人 (manly men).

-Most of the foreigners here are Russian.

-This is the first city I have ever been to which has a public park named after Joseph Stalin.  (Disclaimer:  I have never been to the former Soviet Union.)

-I saw a group of people in Stalin Park gathered around a tree watching a man trying to catch a squirrel.  As the man lumbered through the tree branches, people below were throwing sticks and rocks up in the squirrel’s direction.  My first instinct was to intervene on behalf of the squirrel, but then I remembered from my Midwest upbringing that it is virtually impossible for a human (or most other animals for that matter) to catch a squirrel with their bare hands…especially in a tree.  My deceased family dog Abbey, who was faster and more agile than any human save for maybe Liu Xiang, tried valiantly for 15 years and never even came close.  I watched for about 20 minutes, until the squirrel eventually made it back to the ground, and whisked off, leaving the frustrated mob behind.  

-Near Stalin Park I encountered a Uighur man selling round, sugar-topped, bread snacks for 1 RMB.  It was hands down the tastiest pastry I have ever eaten in China.

-Harbin is famous for its European turn of the century architecture.  I can’t speak for what’s already been demolished, but what still stands is remarkably well-preserved.  Zhong Yang Da Jie, the main pedestrian street in old Harbin, is still paved with cobblestone and has maintained a distinct European feel, even though most of the Russian residents are long gone.

-I spent half of my day today exploring Harbin’s Jewish history.  There are two synagugues still standing, the “Old Synagogue,” built around the turn of the century, and the “New Synagogue,” built about fifteen years later.  The New Synagogue has been restored and converted into a museum of Harbin’s Jewish history.  The exhibits include hundreds of photos and paintings with detailed inscriptions about their historical significance.  They also have a mock Torah scroll which records the demographic history of Harbin’s Jewish community in Chinese.  Interestingly, other than the Torah scroll, the only other item which does not contain English translations is an extensive exhibit on “Jewish Einstein.”  As for the Old Synagogue, it’s now a mini-shopping center of sorts, with a coffee house, pizza shop, and a boutique selling Nepalese and Indian jewelry.  The exterior still very much looks like a synagogue  

by the way, if anybody knows an Internet bar in Harbin with Photoshop, I am willing to pay top dollar!