The French Connections...

Today's news reports claim that China is ready to make amends with France over their pre-Olympic, anti-China stance on Tibet.

China ready to mend ties with France: govtAFP - 58 minutes ago
BEIJING (AFP) - China said Thursday it was ready to mend ties with France following a deep row over Tibet, in its first conciliatory move since tensions flared last year.
China Premier Wen's Europe Trip To Focus On Econ Cooperation Wall Street Journal
China says Wen offers Europe "journey of confidence" Reuters
Xinhua - International Herald Tribune - Bloomberg - EasyBourse.com
all 198 news articles »

While the headlines mention this as the "first conciliatory move," it seems they might have overlooked what has been going on in Harbin for the past several months. Each year one of the coldest regions of China celebrates its notoriety by immersing itself in the beauty and magic of the ice and cold season in a tradition that dates back more than a thousand years.

This year the theme is France... and it had to be planned somewhat in advance. Clever these Chinese, in so many ways. The Harbin Ice Festival was officially proclaimed in 1985 following the Cultural Revolution in China, but dates back to ancient times when villagers would partially freeze a bucket of water, remove the outer shell, put a candle inside and make an ice lantern. Be sure to click that link above to see a bunch of amazing photos and some videos depicting what an incredible event this has become.