The main event: the 13th annual Ice & Snow World. We were there for opening night, which included a fireworks display and a performance with blaring background music and uniformly outfitted downhill skiers, the narrative of which I couldn’t begin to interpret.

The ice-lantern structures were impressive in a Chinese way — that is to say, in their sheer scale, ambition, and luminosity. What a task it must be to construct them; my mind went to the Egyptian pyramids. But for my yuan, I’ll take the hand-carved sculptures anyday.

You can see a few of those at the bottom, the result of the First International Ice Assemblage Sculpture Contest, a competition made up of 12 teams from countries around the world. (The winter wonderlands of Singapore and Malaysia were represented; the U.S., apparently, was not.) The rules: “Each team has 3 or 4 artists. There are 12 pieces of ice in total (100x50x40cm) and consumption of the ice should cover at least 60% of the total amount. Mechanical transportation and electric tools are applicable. Sculptures were carved by hand then assessed by the jury.” It was unclear who won, but the Russians’ depiction of Romeo and Juliet at the altar, accompanied by creepy hooded druids (was that in the play?), was the clear standout among the tourists.

The biggest disappointment for me was not being able to witness the competition or any other construction efforts. I would have enjoyed watching the process as much as the final result.