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Harbin's most notorious and macabre attraction is outside the city proper, about 30km southwest, in the tiny village of PINGFANG , near the terminus of bus #338 (Y2), which you can catch at the train station. This was the home of a secret Japanese research establishment during World War II and is now open to the public as a grisly museum (daily 8.30-11.30am & 1-4pm; Y10 foreigners, Y3 students). Here prisoners of war were injected with deadly viruses, dissected alive and frozen or heated slowly until they died. More than three thousand people from China, Russia and Mongolia were murdered by troops from unit 731 of the Japanese army. After the war, the Japanese tried to hide all evidence of the base, and its existence only came to light through the efforts of Japanese investigative journalists. It was also discovered that, as with scientists in defeated Nazi Germany, the Americans gave the Japanese scientists immunity from prosecution in return for their research findings. The museum's collection comprises mostly photographs labelled in Chinese. Looking at the displays, including a painting of bound prisoners being used as bomb targets, you understand why many Chinese mistrust Japan to this day. Jingbo Hu (Mirror Lake), 150km east of Harbin, is one of Heilongjiang's prettiest spots. At 45km long, set deep among forested hills, it's a good place to go fishing, boating and hiking, or just to sit and eat fruit, as many of the Chinese visitors seem to do. There's a rash of development concentrated at the northern end, which most people stick to, and mile after mile of virgin countryside beyond. To get here, take a train or bus to Mudanjiang (4hr) and then a tourist bus (3hr) to the lake itself. It's possible to stay in Mudanjiang at the Mudanjiang Hotel, 188 Majia Jie (tel 0451/3638488; Y100-150), or on the north side of the lake at the Jingbo Hu Binguan (tel 0453/6270091; Y150-200). There are plenty of Chinese-only guesthouses around that are a lot cheaper, but you'll need to do some persuading to convince them to take you. The ski area of YABULI is the place to be for Heilongjiang's International Ski Festival from December 5 to January 5. The resort spreads across the southern side of Guokui (Potlid) Mountain (1400m), 100km southeast of Harbin. A free bus from the Swan Hotel makes the four-hour trip at 8:40am and 1:40pm, though you'll be expected to stay at Windmill Villa (tel 0451/3455168 or 3455088; dorm Y200-300, double Y300-500). Equipment rental and lift tickets start at Y100 for two hours or Y240 for the day. There's also a 2.5-kilometre steel toboggan run , built in 1996 when the resort hosted the Asian Winter Games. Yabuli is regarded as the premier ski resort in China, and as such, Windmill Villa draws guests from all over the country via its offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.
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