There's a Reason December is Low Season for Inner Mongolia

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As winter settled over Beijing, it occurred to me that what I really needed, what I had failed to experience after nearly 5 years in China, was cold weather so severe parts of my body might freeze off. That kind of cold must be fun. And so, without fully considering the ramification, or putting my affairs in order, I agreed to fly to Hailar, Inner Mongolia for a couple of days in December. Honestly, how cold could it be?

Really cold. On a good day, 20 below zero. When I found this out, there was only one thing I could do, buy lots of new clothing. Ski pants, puffy jacket, long underwear, extra thick socks, gloves, 2 hats and more gloves. For good measure, I bought some snow boots too. I considered a motorcycle helmet, but figured the visor would inhibit taking photographs.

Alas, I should have opted for the helmet. The whole point of the trip was to photograph a coal-fired power plant still under construction. That may not sound like a fun project for most, but I could not have asked for more -  all access to a huge feat of engineering over 100 meters high. Okay, I did ask for one more slight detail. Specifically, I asked Gianfranco for a power plant near Beijing. Gianfranco is my friend who happens to be an engineer on many such projects. Sure, Beijing is nice, but he thought this would be more interesting as the place would be covered in snow. I suspect he found the thought of me freezing my keister off while taking photos worthy of a laugh as well.

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If there is one word I would use to describe Inner Mongolia in wintertime it’s "white". There was not a lot of snow, but everything was dusted with it. After lunch, we headed to the project site and Gianfranco attempted to find someone to take me around as he would be attending a meeting. However, since his meeting was postponed, and he could not find anyone available to make sure I did not get myself killed, he decided to join me. Just to be clear, walking around a construction site in the middle of winter is not Gianfranco's idea of fun. I got to hand it to him though, he bared it with fortitude as I would have turned back after five minutes in his shoes (see image below).

[endif]The scene below reminded me of model airplane parts[endif]

Construction worker taking a break and probably wondering what the heck I'm doing up there.The way down."Get to close to that transformer and it will fry you."Gianfranco led me around in sneakers - for nearly 2 hours. I had boots on and my feet were still cold.

The next afternoon, when the business of the trip was finished, we drove for a couple of hours to the city of Manzhouli on the Russian border. This place was loaded with enough Russian signage and residents that I wondered if we had accidentally crossed over the border in the twilight.We ate some fantastic Russian food, that I neglected to photograph, and then the guys went out for drinks while I decided to tempt fate with some night photography in town. I just felt like I had not really experienced the cold yet.

[if !supportEmptyParas]After we started driving, ice formed on the inside of the windowsLivestock grazing under the most inhospitable conditionsIt did not take long. After a mere 20 minutes, my feet were getting cold. A couple of times, I walked into stores just to warm up for a bit, but I found after an hour, my toes hurt so bad that I had to retreat to the hotel to really thaw out. Aside from my feet, everything else stayed warm. Surprisingly, even my hands did too, though I did stick them in my pockets as often as possible; gloves and all. That hand warmer in my pocket was immeasurably helpful as I had to wear a thin glove to operate the camera. Even the camera did not mind the cold weather.Locals clearly ignorant of the dangerous weather conditions in which they liveManzhoulihas dozens and dozens of snow sculpturesOh the ironyPerhaps the local secret to staying warm can be found within.[endif]

For me, the trip was a success; let’s face it, I survived intact. My only regret is that we did it all in two days instead of one. The next time I go back to Inner Mongolia will be during July, when all the grass is growing and the hills are awash in a sea of green. I hear it's beautiful that time of year. All the same, I’m taking my coat.

[if !supportEmptyParas]Me, wearing a cold-weather hard hat. Power plant - done. Now, where's that coal mine?[endif]

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