Harbin, in northeastern China, is a beautiful ice city, and its annual Ice and Snow Festival is a key part of the local tourism culture. However, this type of ice and snow culture is not unique to China; winter in Latvia can be just as spectacular. In Europe, Christmas and New Year are important holidays, and this is no exception in Latvia. To welcome the arrival of the holidays, starting from the 22nd of the month, an ice sculpture exhibition is held at the Bastion Hill ice sculpture park in the capital, Riga. Every year, the exhibition features dozens of ice sculptures, including ice Christmas trees and the "Magic Dating Place" ice archway. After immigrating to Latvia, you can not only visit and experience the ice and snow art but also participate in the creation of ice sculptures, as well as making Christmas chocolates and candles on-site. This way, visitors do not have to worry about finding suitable souvenirs.
At the 9th "Ice Fantasy" International Ice Sculpture Competition, which concluded in Khabarovsk in 2010, an international team composed of members from Russia and Latvia won the victory. A representative stated: "Ille Karlis from Latvia and Natalia Chistyakova from Saint Petersburg won the championship in the basic competition, and their combined ice sculpture 'Evolution' was rated as the best work."
In 2011, the Latvian team achieved excellent results at the 25th Harbin International Ice Sculpture Competition, with the first prize awarded to the Latvian team's ice sculpture work "Alice in Wonderland." In 2012, at the 26th China Harbin International Ice Sculpture Competition, the Latvian Team 1 work "Dreamer" and the Russian Team 6 work "Conqueror of the Sea" shared the silver award.
For ice sculptors, the most beautiful music is the use of nature's power combined with human infinite creativity. These ice sculptors present to the world the most crystal-clear, fragile, unrepeatable, and ephemeral artistic treasures.
