London to Manzhouli

It was a strange feeling to step out of the Hainan airlines plane on the tarmac at Manzhouli airport after a sequence of flights that had taken me from London to Manzhouli via Paris and Beijing. Apart from the intense cold, the first thing to strike me was the contrast between the white landscape and the amazingly bright blue skies that lay overhead. The temperature was supposed to be -19 but was clearly alot colder.

I walked across the apron and into the terminal building to join the mad scramble for our baggage. After escaping I made my way out to the waiting minibuses. As long as there was daylight for photography our extra-ordinary tourist buses would not be seeking out our hotel – instead we headed straight out of Manzhouli on the highway, leaving behind the colourful turrets of the newly emerging city. Our destination – Zhalai Nuoer.

The apron at Manzhouli Airport

The terminal building at Manzhouli Airport

Our extraordinary tourist buses