The banks of the Songhua River in Harbin, northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, were alive on Monday evening with the sound of fireworks and dazzling lights as the 42nd Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival kicked off.
The annual event, held at the Harbin Ice and Snow World, has grown exponentially since its humble beginnings as an ice lantern show in 1985. It has since become one of the world's four largest ice and snow festivals alongside Japan's Sapporo Snow Festival, Canada's Quebec Winter Carnival and Norway's Oslo Holmenkollen Ski Festival.
The festival, which attracts millions of tourists from around the world, continues through the end of February, overlapping with some of China's most important traditional holidays, such as Chinese New Year and Lantern Festival.
It has become the calling card for the northeastern city and a major contributor to its booming winter tourism.
