You must always travel. A change of scenery enriches our lives, gives new experiences and unforgettable impressions. it is especially interesting to look at a completely different culture from Russian.

I have always strived to explore the world and prefer not only a beach holiday, but also interesting sightseeing tours to look at the life of each specific country without embellishment.

China is a mysterious country that has always fascinated me with its frantic pace of life, beauty and majesty. Chinese tea traditions, street festivals, a huge variety in trade - it's so interesting. Most recently, I visited the wonderful Chinese town of Heihe.

It is very easy to get to the town of Heihe from our Blagoveshchensk. These two cities are separated from each other by the Amur River. It is very unusual that being in China it is quite possible to see a Russian city and look at houses and even people. Getting to China from Blagoveshchensk is very easy, you just need to cross the river by ferry, it takes only 10 minutes. Further, of course, you will have to overcome customs control, after which you can go to get acquainted with the life of the Chinese.

Heihe - from the Chinese "Black River", a small trading town on the banks of the Amur, a border town with the Amur Region. The city is not too rich in sights and is interesting precisely in terms of affordable overseas shopping. Moreover, for the Russians there is a visa-free regime for visiting. Despite the fact that Heihei is not very interesting as an initial stage for exploring the sights of China, here you can enjoy the real life of the Chinese and see what and how they earn their living.

Shopping tours in Heihei can be bought at almost any travel agency. in this town unrealistically low prices for clothes, fur coats and sheepskin coats, shoes and various household items. Here you can buy goods for sale in your own outlets, or dress the whole family for little money, while not overpaying cunning merchants selling Chinese goods in Russia. You can bargain with the Chinese, they love it and often manage to bring down the price significantly.

I bought excellent boots for winter and off-season, excellent outerwear, and a lot of different things for all occasions in Heihe. Here is a fine and varied food, characteristic of China. It is very interesting to try something unusual, the main thing is to try to find out the composition of the dish as accurately as possible. Especially if you're a vegetarian and don't want to eat dog meat or fried rat...

There are many Russians in Heihe, so you can pay with both Chinese yuan and rubles. Many local residents (traders, taxi drivers, owners of restaurants and cafes) speak Russian quite well. But, if they decide to deceive you, they instantly forget Russian and begin to behave aggressively. It is better not to get involved in conflicts with the locals, as their police always turn out to be on the side of their people.

The town has many interesting streets, small parks where children frolic and cheerful pensioners dancing with fans. Heihe is decorated with a large variety of statues and monuments. There is something to see here. This is the real life of China's middle class, these are real people who work to earn their living and live in the real world with its problems and worries. Life in China is colorful and interesting, sometimes frighteningly disgusting. I was upset by the cramped cages with puppies and kittens in the market. God alone knows for what needs the omnivorous Chinese sell these fluffies ...

If you want to buy Chinese goods and get to know the country without embellishment, go to Heihe.

Video review

All(5)

First steps on Chinese soil.

By the standards of China, Heihe is a complete wilderness, and also cold. The population is a measly 200,000. I was sure that everything here is tailored exclusively for Russian shop tourists, but this turned out to be far from the case. In Heihe, no one speaks Russian, except for a few sellers in the central supermarket who know a couple of words and numbers. Complete acclimatization - you check into a hotel by explaining yourself on your fingers, in a restaurant you choose dishes at random from pictures or a list of Chinese names. Perspicacious Chinese: why tie the whole life of the city to trade with Russia, if the economy can collapse there at any moment, and work will be lost? At most, you can take the trouble to translate the sign into Baidu translate and rewrite it with errors.

More advanced ones come up with separate names that are understandable to Russians.

My favorite is the restaurant "Putin".

Went to have lunch. This is not the cheapest restaurant by local standards, here even the menu is decently translated into Russian.

A typical Chinese dish costs about 20 yuan. In China, meat is always cut into narrow and long pieces so that it is convenient to eat with chopsticks.

This is a better restaurant. Transparent, sticky noodles are found throughout China, but are more popular in the north.

Chongqing samovar is a hot pot, a popular dish in the south.

Delicious sweet potatoes, except for Heihe, I have not seen this dish anywhere else.

Heihe is full of cheap hotels, unlike other cities, it is not a problem for a foreigner to settle here.

The best store in Heihe.

The infrastructure in Heihe is a million times better than in any similar Russian Muhosransk. The roads are ideal with 10 lanes, the cold climate does not bother anyone.

Typical Chinese architecture is quite attractive.

Bus stop.

Buses in Heihe are like paziki. Such buses usually travel between Chinese cities and villages. According to Chinese tradition, bus routes written in Chinese hang at stops. Buses run frequently, so the exact timetable by the minute is not indicated.

The station is quite impressive in size for a city with two trains per day.

A statue with a drug addict horse, they like to put it in different Chinese cities, as if it were not just a city, but a tourist center of such and such a class.

Street names are duplicated in Russian.

The statues in the courtyards are funny.

Snowmen.

The central street is simply gorgeous for such a wilderness.

The bushes are trimmed in the form of nesting dolls.

All for two yuan ($0.3).

In northern Chinese cities, the entrances to the premises are closed with such massive curtains.

Huafu's main shopping center looks quite kitsch.

There is nothing to do inside. The selection is dull, the prices are very high. There are almost no buyers.

Farewell look at Russia.

Have you ever seen the streets in the Russian Muhosransk so lit up at night?

... China feeds, waters, clothes and shoes the Far Eastern region of Russia. Chinese markets provide the Russian population with everything they need. But some Russians prefer to "shop" and relax in China.

One of the easiest and fastest way to visit China – via Blagoveshchensk – in Heihe. The Chinese city of Heihe (Heilongjiang Province) and Blagoveshchensk are separated by the Amur River (the Mongols call the Amur "Khara-Muren" – "river", and the Chinese- "Heilongjiang" - "Dragon River").

How to cross the border

The border Chinese city of Heihe has been declared a free Russian-Chinese trade zone (an open city of the 1st category), it is open for visa-free entry of Russians. Russians can freely enter Heihe with only a passport, and do not need to apply for a visa or be part of a tourist group.

Russian citizens have the right to live in hotels and Chinese families, as well as rent and even buy housing in Heihe. If the period of stay in China is more than 30 days, you will need to apply for a visa. In order to get a visa for a month, you need: a passport, 2 photos, $ 80, plus a border crossing fee – 35$.

main ways legal three border crossings: 1) use the services of a travel company (the easiest way, about everything- for your money! - the travel agency will take care), 2) take advantage of the invitation of someone living in China, 3) cross the border on their own. Let's consider the 3rd method in more detail.

You need to get to the river station (there is also a travel agency " AMOURASSO and customs). The river station is located in the south-east of the city (Tchaikovsky street). From here, a ferry and a small passenger ship leave for Heihe in summer. During the freeze-up period (October-November), hovercraft ("cougars" and "stingrays") go, and in winter there is an ice road across the Amur (it should be noted that during freeze-up, sometimes the crossing does not work for a day or two: for safety reasons hovercraft do not go because of the high hummocks). The checkpoint is closed on Sundays, and on Fridays and Saturdays there are a lot of people, so it's better to use it on other days. Crowded here during school holidays. Inside the building of the river station there is a check-in point for visa-free travel. A ticket for the boat costs $35 (round trip, valid for 1 month).

On the Chinese side, a stamp is put in the passport and a fee of about 150 yuan is charged (possible in rubles). At Chinese customs, an entry card is filled in (transliterated) upon entry, and upon exit – exit (by the way, I saw a funny picture at the Chinese customs: if one of the especially impatient "Russo-tourists", standing in line at the "kiosk" of the checkpoint, stepped on the yellow demarcation line, – a young Chinese border guard, filled with the grandeur of a Great Power, made a warning attack, accompanied by a guttural cry ...). Immediately at the Chinese customs, you can exchange rubles for yuan (by the way, in principle, you can not change it, since rubles are taken everywhere in Heihe). From the pier on the Chinese bank of the Amur to the center of Heihe there are taxis (for 5 yuan, by the way, this is a stable fare for a “wheelbarrow” throughout the city) and buses. Dozens of “helpers” (“helpers”) crowd here - “My not a bully, mine is a helper!”.

What is Heihe

The territory of Heihe is 10 square meters. km. It is one of the most important border and coastal cities in China. More than 20 years have passed since Heihe resumed border trade with Blagoveshchensk and other cities of the Amur Region, opened border tourism, established border crossing points, and began to develop free trade in the border zone. During these 20 years Heihe – from a small village with unsightly buildings – turned into a modern city, rapidly developing both up and in breadth.

New microdistricts, industrial enterprises, hotels, banks, offices - everything is in the European style, but with a national flavor. heihe – wonderful tourist center. New restaurants, discos, saunas, beauty salons, shopping centers are opening. Not so long ago, a ski base was built in the suburbs of Heihe "Longjun" where you can go skiing, sledding, snowmobiling or just enjoy the magnificent nature. People come here not only for cheap goods, but also to taste Chinese cuisine, relax in saunas and just have a good time.

Hundreds of Russian tourists cross the Blagoveshchensk customs every day. 60 percent of them go to Heihe. The interest of Russian tourists in Heihe is mercantile – so-called shop tour. Most people start their acquaintance with Heihe from the Shopping Center "Huafu"("Heavenly") – it is a shopping mall. According to rough estimates, up to 500 Russians come here on weekdays. On the weekend – up to 1 thousand. Everything is bought up: shoes, clothes, household appliances ... The Chinese, as a rule, show the prices of goods on a calculator. Bargaining with them is not only possible, but also necessary, since at first they break the exorbitant price.

Many Chinese have a tolerable command of the Russian language (“dluga, hello!”, “cheaper”, “don’t be lazy!”). The attitude towards the Russians is friendly. This is understandable, because in Heihe now almost all business is based on trade and service to Russians.

Chinese entrepreneurs are trying to attract Russian tourists by any means. For example, signs and billboards "optimized" for Russians. Most of them are written with errors, and therefore very funny (for example: "Sexual Health", "The very center of men", "Beautiful Swaddle House", "Retail and wholesale: health tea", "All different goods: Wholesale and retail", "Men's and fashion clothes", "Meeting suitcase and bag". What is behind the name "Ay fuck" one can only guess, but apparently nothing bad ...). It is difficult to write signs for Russian tourists in Russian, and even without mistakes. The most fashionable- use popular Russian name, consisting of 4– 5 letters or 2 – 3 syllables. For example, "Lida", "Maria", "Vania". By the way, restaurants with the name "Putin" - at least three.

Lots of ateliers. Suit, coat - tailoring in a day. Cost - within 750 yuan, the second time (by card) – up to 350 yuan. Struck "Atelier Hongzhi"(st. Cultural, 108). On the bag, which will be given to you along with the thing sewn for you, there is an inscription: “The fabric is modern. High speed cutting. Choice work. Fashion style. Lony equipment. Lered technologies. Atelier Hong Zhi - Your pleasure.

Medicine

Medicine is at its best, but in order to get serious treatment, you need to go further, for example, to Wudalianchi.

helpers

The services of “helpers” are used by many who are in China for the first time, because they don’t know what, where, how and how much, and the “helpers” speak Russian quite tolerably, moreover, they charge a fairly moderate fee – 100 rubles, not yuan! - in a day.

Yuan

The Chinese value and respect their yuan. What is characteristic, when you pay with our 500- and 1000-ruble bills, they practically do not consider them, but take them immediately, confidently. And when you pay in yuan, the Chinese look at them in the light, and crush them, unless they sniff and bite. From this we can conclude that there are a lot of counterfeit yuan "walking" in China.

Bird flu

There, of course, there is much less snow than here, but it is quite cold, with a piercing wind. Very many (and not only young people!) walk in light jackets and without hats. One third of the inhabitants – in gauze bandages - protected from bird flu.

A lot of Chinese ride bicycles (simple and boxed), mopeds. Lots of cars (including taxis). No one follows the rules of the road, everyone constantly puts pressure on the signal. They drive quite fast, but somehow manage not to collide, and, by the way, pedestrians are respected.

The industriousness of the Chinese

The Chinese people are truly a Great People! The industriousness of the Chinese is amazing, they grab any job. They work practically without days off and holidays (many allow themselves to rest only one day – in the New Year, as the Chinese themselves say), but, nevertheless, they cannot afford much (although their prices - compared to ours - are much lower, but this is for us!). The contrasts are striking: there is brilliance and poverty nearby. But everyone, even homeless people, walk around with mobile phones and constantly call someone on the go. Everyone is selling something, changing something, offering something (for example, right on the main street they offer to sharpen knives or change yuan) ...

Heihe is a small open border city in the Heilongjiang province on the banks of the river of the same name in the north of the People's Republic of China. From Chinese, the name of the province is translated as "Black Dragon River".

Heihe Tourist Center is a Russian-Chinese free trade zone. Between the points of Blagoveshchensk-Heihe there is a regular river service. Since 2004, residents of Russia have had visa-free access to the territory of Heihe, so if you have a passport, anyone can get there.

The population of Heihe City District is about 130,000 people, most of whom live in the Suburbs. (For comparison: in my Blagoveshchensk, the population is about 220 thousand people.) According to the plan developed by the government of Heihe County, by 2020 the number of inhabitants should increase to 320,000. streets.

There are many entertainment establishments ready to serve Russian tourists in the city. Saunas, baths, tea houses, restaurants, bars, karaoke, bowling, nightclubs and discos, beauty salons, massage and beauty parlors in Heihe are located, in fact, on every street. Businessmen can rent conference rooms. Basically, this service is provided in hotels.

Heihe hotels are famous for the fact that you can bargain there. The room, which initially costs about 300 yuan, can eventually be obtained for half the amount. By the way, the average price of a double apartment in Heihe is about 150-200 yuan. If you do not take into account the common residence options and go to a hotel that is popular mainly among the Chinese, you can get shelter for a day for 50-60 yuan. A bed in a multi-bed room will cost only 10-15 yuan. But the neighborhood is already, as they say, a matter of taste.

When traveling to Heihe on your own without the support of a travel company, it is better to check into a hotel and buy any goods without the help of taxi drivers or other unfamiliar locals. This is fraught with additional costs. A new friend will certainly receive a percentage of your purchase from the seller for referring you, and from you for helping with translation difficulties. Unfortunately, such a scheme is very typical for Heihe.

Shopping in Heihe can be even more than successful. The main shopping street for Russians is Central Street. There is also the largest Huefu department store. It is surrounded by many street boutiques, shops and stalls where you can buy everything from oversized furniture, cars and car parts to souvenirs, toys and the ubiquitous clothes with labels of famous companies.

In recent years, more and more Russians are considering Heihe as an option not only for shopping, but also for fruitful treatment. Local specialists successfully cope with the diagnosis and treatment of childhood enuresis, cervical paralysis, dental diseases, female infertility and much more. Recovery is carried out by the methods of Chinese traditional medicine and generally accepted European ones. After operations, you can improve your health in sanatoriums and clinics in Heihe.

Crossing.

Crossing.

Crossing.

Crossing.

View of Blagoveshchensk.

Heihe.

Heihe in the evening.

Heihe in the evening.

Heihe in the evening.

One of the most remarkable sights of Heihe is the "Russian Village". It is located in the western part of the city. The fake village has an interesting past. Previously, the Chinese version of the series “The Dawns Here Are Quiet…” based on the work of Boris Vasilyev was filmed there. The film was created under the supervision of director Myo Vynin. Graduates of the All-Russian State Institute of Cinematography were invited to participate in the project: Andrey Sokolov, Tatyana Ostap, Lyudmila Kolesnikova and others. To facilitate international contact as much as possible, six translators worked daily among the scenery.

A lot of funny things happened during filming. For example, the Chinese had to explain for a long time that the Russians were not used to eating on porcelain dishes, drinking vodka from the neck, and ingenious wu-shu techniques replace ordinary strikes on unprotected places. The film turned out great. And the enterprising inhabitants of the Celestial Empire immediately turned the scene of action into a fascinating park with an Orthodox church, stacks of birch firewood, wooden houses with a smoking chimney and golden sunflowers near the fence.

Fans of extreme sports will love the Longzhu ski resort, which is located near Heihe. There you can go skiing down the mountain, ride a flying snowboard or rent a powerful snowmobile. You can get to Longzhu by taxi or bus.

You can have a cultural rest in Heihe by going to the park named after General Wansu or simply "Wansu". There are many attractions for children and adults, as well as a mini zoo. Another great place to spend time with children is the Big Heihe Island Park. You can get into it by walking along the embankment of the Amur River with tall lanterns and singing fountains. There are wonderful views from there. Entrance to the Big Heihe is free. Everyone can ride on the carousels on a first-come, first-served basis. Inside the park is a botanical garden. At night, each tree in it is illuminated, and the branches shimmer with multi-colored lights.

((http://visitchina.ru/articles/all/kheykhe_gorod_v_kotorom_vam_rady/
http://www.heihe-gid.ru/razvlecheniya/russkaya_derevnya_heihe
http://bigpicture.ru/?p=149682))

The city of the Black River is the name of the Chinese city of Heihe in translation into Russian. It is located exactly opposite Blagoveshchensk, on the other side of the Amur. For Russian tourists, visiting Heihe is not associated with any difficulties. There is a river communication between it and Blagoveshchensk. If you are planning a trip to Heihe in 2017, it is not necessary to apply for a visa. Any Russian can visit this northern Chinese city freely, visa-free.

Rest and treatment in Heihe

Do not burden yourself with problems, just go to rest in Heihe. Shift the worries to the specialists http://vheihe.ru.

Dentistry Heihe

Heihe is a recognized medical center in China. Most tourists come here for dental care. The oldest and one of the best departments in the country has been headed by Professor Guan Peng, the luminary of Chinese medical science, for almost 40 years. In addition to him, the department has 2 more doctors of science, 7 candidates, several graduate students, as well as a staff of the most talented dentists. At the same time, the cost of services is half cheaper than in Russia.

shopping

But tourists come to Heihe not only for treatment and recreation. Shopping - for the sake of it, many travel long distances to Blagoveshchensk. It is easier to name what is not in the shops and shops of this Chinese city. Everything is brought from here: trinkets, telephones, household appliances, shoes and even mink coats. The main shopping centers "Huafu" in the center and "Yuandong" near the customs are always filled with Russian tourists. Almost for nothing you can buy things at the flea market. However, he only works in the morning.

Where to stay overnight

There are many hotels in Heihe. There are no five stars among them. Three stars is the most you can count on. But with the same star rating, the services provided are very different. Therefore, before you pay for your stay, take the trouble to look at the room. The average cost of a night's stay varies from 110 to 130 yuan. There are also cheaper hotels. But the conditions in them are appropriate - minimal, with amenities on the floor.

You can enjoy real Chinese food, considered the healthiest in the world, in one of the many cafes. But if you are not an adherent of the exotic, then you can easily find a cafe or restaurant with Russian cuisine. The cost of an average check is about 30 yuan.

Rest places

There are no historical sights in the city. This disadvantage is completely covered by the natural beauties of Wudalianchi Park. As a relaxation, locals also advise taking a walk along the Amur embankment and enjoying the panorama of the majestic river. For more active guests, the customs amusement park awaits in summer, and the Longzhu Ski Center in the suburbs in winter. Reviews of a trip to Heihe often contain stories about visiting the Tian Yi baths. You can not only sweat in them, but also take a course of massage and spa treatments.

Heihe is always happy to have guests. Local no-no yes, and they will please you with a Russian word. Here, even the signs are written in our own way. No wonder, because Heihe is visited by up to a thousand Russian tourists on weekends. And this is the main source of income for the city and citizens.