THE ANCIENT VS. THE MODERN OLYMPICS

THE ANCIENT VS. THE MODERN OLYMPICS

by : Nurul

 

Have you ever heard about olympic games? because I will be talking about this game. oke, here we go.

  The ancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to Participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes Participated in the ancient games.Only men were allowed to Compete in the ancient Greek games. Athletic training in ancient Greece was part of every free male citizen's education.

 

The ancient Olympic games were held as a religious event to honor the Greek God, Zeus. A hundred oxen were typically given as a sacrifice. Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin baron, who helped revive the Olympic games in the Nineteenth Century, INSISTED that they feature the international competition of athletes.The ancient Olympics yielded only one winner. A crown of olive leaves was placed on his head and a statue in his image was erected in Olympia.The ancient games were always held in Olympia. Only the first modern Olympics has been held in Greece, though the next games will be as well.

 

 Here are the differences between ancient and modern olympics .

•  In ancient Olympics athletes who won will have a lifetime supply of foods, in modern Olympics victorious athletes will have medals, and the modern Olympics now have winter Olympics , there are more sports than in ancient Greek the ancient is a preparation for war but the modern are sporting events.

•  Wars between all competing nations would end, competitors were only men, there were only summer games every 4 years, only at Olympia (never changing the venue), very religious event, most events were nude, women were rarely allowed to attend, festivities included drama productions. Modern times;Besides the ones listed above, there are now winter sports so Olympic occur every 2 years, women can compete and watch, there are more sports, multiple venues in a single changing host nation, opening and closing ceremonies, used as political event (boycotting would never be allowed in ancient Greece).

 The ancient Olympics were first held in thousands of years ago. In 1896, the modern Olympics began. The contestants in the ancient Olympic game were mainly men and competed in nude for toughness and braveness.In modern Olympics, contestants are of both genders. This gives women the right to participate, when in ancient Olympics, there were little women participants. In the ancient Olympics, the only women who took part were unmarried virgins. These participants did not attract as much attention as the men who dominated the Olympics in the ancient times. 

 

sources :  http://hnn.us/article/572 ,

               http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_the_difference_between_the_ancient_and_modern_Olympics

 

Only men were allowed to compete in the ancient Greek games. Athletic training in ancient Greece was part of every free male citizen's education. The first women to compete in the Olympics were Marie Ohnier and Mme. Brohy. They participated in croquet games in the 1900 Olympics. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

Only men were allowed to compete in the ancient Greek games. Athletic training in ancient Greece was part of every free male citizen's education. The first women to compete in the Olympics were Marie Ohnier and Mme. Brohy. They participated in croquet games in the 1900 Olympics. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

The ancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes participated in the ancient games. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

jguugancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes participated in the ancient games. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

The ancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes participated in the ancient games. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

The 

ancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes participated in the ancient games. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

The ancient Olympic games only allowed people of Greek descent to participate. The Salt Lake City Olympics feature 2600 athletes from 77 countries. Only a few hundred athletes participated in the ancient games. - See more at: http://hnn.us/article/572#sthash.0hJ3EMNT.dpuf

THE EFFECT OF VISUAL MEDIA ON PEOPLE LIFE

THE EFFECT OF VISUAL MEDIA ON PEOPLE LIFE

by : Nurul

How do television and the other visual media affect the lives of individuals and families around the globe?. Everyone must have a feel of how the visual media affects our real lives, as if we are seeing e is the real thing. But it turns out it was the work of a creative hand. What i will discuss now is what are the terms of the visual media affect a person's life.

• Media replaces other activities.Some people watch the "tube" for more hours in a day than they do anything  else. In a large number of homes, TV sets-as many as five or more in a single household are always on. Many people watch tv for any hours a day or spend hours playing games or surfing on their computers, they download music, movies, and other forms of entertainment. Instead of spending time taking care of their kids, parents often use a a video screen as an "electronic baby-sitter".
• The effect if TV on mind.Too much TV-especialy programming of low educational value can reduce people's ability to concentrate or reason. In fact, studies show that after only a minute or two of visual media, a person's mind "relaxes" as it does during light sleep. Another possible effect of television and videotapes on the human brain is poor communication. Children who watch a lot of TV may lose their ability to focus on a subject or an educational activity for more than 10 to 15 minutes.
• The effect of violence in the media. The amount of violence on the screen both in real events in the news and movies or in TV programs. It scared them and gives them terrible nightmares. The fear created by media images and language can last for a long time. They may even copy the acts that they see on violent shows-start fires, carry and use weapons, attack people in angry or dangerous ways, and even worse.
• Some people may become dissatisfied with the reality of their own lives. To these viewers, everyday life does not seem as exiting as the roles actors play in movie on TV dramas. Media watchers might get depressed when they can't take care of situations in real life as well as TV stars seem to.They bored with their real life.
• And the last is the most negative effect of all of these kinds of visual media might be addiction. People often feel a strange and powerful to watch TV, download visual material, or play a dvd even when they don't enjoy it or have the free time for entertainment.

You need to pay attention to the visual effects provided by the media. We should be able to limit our need for visual media. We just need to realize that it is only for entertainment and not to be applied or hope does happen in real life. So, be smart and live a normal life. Real life is more beautiful than the drama TV series or movie. :)

Source :  Reading book , Interactions 1 , Silver Edition

PEOPLE WHO HAVE A VERY LONG LIFE

PEOPLE WHO HAVE A VERY LONG LIFE
by : Nurul

we would ask, how do I get to live longer or have longevity? because only a few people in this world who have lived more than 110 years and still be healthy. very much to argue about this. The following are some of the places that it has a long life around the world.

Hunza in the Himalayan Mountains

Hunza is at a very high atitude in the himalayan mountains of asia. there many people over 100 years of age are still in good physical health. additionally, men of 90 are new fathers, and women of 50 still have babies. what are the reasons for this good health? scientists believe that the people of Hunza have these three main advantages or benefits. 1,a healthful unpolluted environment with clean air and water. 2, a simple diet high in vitamins, fiber, and nutrition but low in fat, cholesterol, sugar, and unnatural chemical. 3, physical work and other activities, usually in the fields or with animals. Do you believe it ? well, that's the truth.

The Russian Caucasians and Vilcabamba

People in caucasus mountains in russia are also famous for their longevity. Official birth records were not available, but the community says a woman called Tsurba lived until age 160. Similarly, a man called Shirali probably lived until 168., moreover, his widow was 120 years old. In general, the people not only live a long time, but they also live well. in other words, they are almost never sick. furthermore, when they die, they not only have their own teeth but also a full head of hair, and good eyesight too. Vilcabamba, ecuador, is another area famous for the longevity of its inhabitans. One reason for the good health of the people might be the clean, beautiful environment, another advantage is the moderate climate.

That's some place that the person has a long life, in other words a person's age exceeds the normal length. they are right there. certainty is not clear why they can live longer with a healthy body and even seldom or never sick. some experts believe that physical movement and a stress-free environmental might be the two most important secrets of longevity. Nevertheless, some doctors theorize that members of especially longlived populations have only one thing in common : they don't have valid official government birth records. these health scientist think there is a natural limit to the length of human life, in their theories, it is impossible to reach an age of more than 110 yers or so. Therefore, they say, claims of unusual longevity in certain groups are probably false.

Source : Reading book , Interaction 1 , Silver Edition

HOW FAMILY STRUCTURE HAS CHANGED

HOW FAMILY STRUCTURE HAS CHANGED

by : Nurul

This discussion is how the family structure changes, I will outline how this could happen. The structures, or forms, of the family vary as much as the definition itself. There is no single "true" family form. In Western Europe the nuclear family (a single set of biological parents residing together with their children) was prevalent in the Middle Ages, but at that same time in Eastern Europe multiple generations of the same family lived together in the same household.The following is the year in which the family structure has changed.
  
The early 20th Century

•  
  What caused the structure of the family to change? In the early 1900s in the United States the divorce rate (i.e., the percent of legal endings compared to the number of marriages) began to rise, and the birthrate (i.e., the number of births per 100 or 1000 people) began to decline; in other words, couples stayed married for fewer years, and they had fewer children. Women often chose to get an education and take jobs outside the home. Decades later, the same changes began to happen in other industrialized countries, Today, they are happening in many of the developing nations of the world as well.

The 1930s and 1940s

• The decades of the 1930s and 1940s were difficult years in the industrialized world. During World War II (1939-1945), millions of women had to take care of their homes and their children alone. Because so many men were at war, thousands of these "war widows"--that is to say, women whose husbands were away at war--had to go to work outside the home. Most women worked long hours at hard jobs. There weren't many "perfect families."

The end of the 20th century

•  In the years between 1960 or so and the end of the twentieth century, however, there were many new changes in the structure of the family around the globe, From the 1960s to the 1970s, the divorce rate greatly increased and the birthrate fell by half. The number of single-parent families rose, and the number of couples living together without marriage went up even more.

 Many people today would like the traditional two-parent family back--that is to say, they want a man and a woman to marry for life; they also think the man should support the family and the woman should stay home with the children.the structure of the future family could begin to change faster and faster--and in more and more ways.

That's how the family structure has change. I hope this can be useful for the readers to just knowledge.

sources :  http://oregonexplorer.info/rural/RuralIssues/FamilyStructure , http://eap-rw2.blogspot.com/2007/03/short-history-of-changing-family.html

HOW THE WAY OF THINKING OF CREATIVE PEOPLE

HOW THE WAY OF THINKING OF CREATIVE PEOPLE

by : Nurul

 Creative people will never stop in creating something. They will continue thinking to create something new, different and unique course and also something that will make everyone amazed by everything they make. For this discussion, I will tell you some of the things of how the creative people are thinking. They are not the people whose origin is in thinking. And they will never stop creating something new which is different than the other until they are completely satisfied.For some details, they are very cautious.

Creative thinking is a stable, defining characteristic in some personalities, but it may also change based on situation and context. Inspiration and ideas often arise seemingly out of nowhere and then fail to show up when we most need them, and creative thinking requires complex cognition yet is completely distinct from the thinking process. 

Creative people are thinking about daydreaming. daydreaming can lead to sudden connections and insights because it's related to our ability to recall information in the face of distractions.they see possibilities everywhere and are constantly taking in information that becomes fodder for creative expression. individuals with high creative output will often figure out what time it is that their minds start firing up, and structure their days accordingly. In order to be open to creativity, one must have the capacity for constructive use of solitude. One must overcome the fear of being alone. 

Creative people love to expose themselves to new experiences, sensations and states of mind, and this openness is a significant predictor of creative output. Creative people are insatiably curious. they generally opt to live the examined life, and even as they get older. Observant by nature and curious about the lives of others, creative types often love to people-watch, and they may generate some of their best ideas from it. many creative types thrive off of taking risks in various aspects of their lives. They view all of life as an opportunity for self-expression.They follow their true passions. They get out of their own heads. They surround themselves with beauty.If there's one thing that distinguishes highly creative people from others, it's the ability to see possibilities where others don't, or in other words, vision. Many great artists and writers have said that creativity is simply the ability to connect the dots that others might never think to connect.Creatives like to shake things up, experience new things, and avoid anything that makes life more monotonous or mundane.

 So, if you want to be a creative person, you can follow their way of thinking that I have mentioned above. good luck. I hope this will be useful for those of you who read.

Reference :  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/04/creativity-habits_n_4859769.html

DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS IN DIFFERENT COUNTRIES

by : Nurul

 

This time, my topics is about different directions in different countries. and now i'm going to tell you what kind of direction that someone will tell you in different countries. there are so many styles of direction.

First country that i will talking about how they give a direction to some place is japan. In japan,most streets don't have names. so, people in japan will  use landmarks in their directions. for example, " go straight down to the corner, turn left at the big hotel with the sushi bar and go past the mini market ".

Second is United States. In the countryside of the American, there are not usually many landmarks. there are no mountains, so the land is very flat. in many places there are no towns or buildings for miles.resident of the flatlands will tell you direction like north, south, east, and west and distances, like two miles. for example, " take this road here, go straight north for two miles, make a right turn, and then go another mile in a northeast direction. keep to the left around the curve, then merge with local route. but people in towns or citizen moght say " go straight for five blocks, turn left at main street, go to the third stoplight and turn right. that's sixth street, the police office is two blocks up on your left..

Third is Los Angeles, residents of this pacific coast area are almost always in their cars, so they measure distance in time. for example, if you ask some place they might answer " i guess it's about five minutes from here". if you ask how many miles, kilometers or blocks that will you take to go there, they rarely know - or they can seldom say.

Fourth is Greece. sometimes, people in greece do not even try to give directions. that's because a tourist seldom understand the greek language. instead, a greek person may motion or gesture or say " follow me ", then that person will lead you through the streets of a city to the post office.

Fifth its New York. if you ask some place that they don't know, a New Yorker might say " sorry, i have no idea " and walk away quickly.

Sixth is Yukatan, Mexico, not many residents answer " i don't know ". people in yukatan may believe that a quick " i don't know " is impolite. They might stay and talk to you and usually thay'll try to give an answer, sometimes a wrong one. if you don't know streets in Yukatan, you can get really lost in this southern region.

oke. i hope this is useful for you guys. thanks.

resource : Reading book. Interactions 1 , Silver Edition (Elaine Kirn . Pamela Hartmann )

STUDENT LIFE IN WESTERN

STUDENT LIFE IN WESTERN

by : Nurul

In the previous post, Silfi was talking abou social class in America, but this time, i'm going to talking about student life in western,because i think, student life in western is interesting topics to talk about, because they have a different social life with my country (indonesia). As we know, Student life in university is different all around the world. all i want to talk about is how the social life of student in western. as far as i know, student in western sometime choose to have part-time job. they will attend the college and then go to a part-time job for gain more money. for me, its really hard for learn and work at the same day. but if they don't do that, they will not have enough money to fulfill their life cost.

People in western are usually expense their own life after graduate school. they don't want to spend their parents money because they want to be useful for themselves without burden their parents. In western, students only have 2 days free in one weeks. its friday and saturday. that's why american people are commonly says "thanks good its friday" , because they just have two days for relaxing and having fun with friends or family. as far as i know, all activity of work or study are been off on that day.
After study for 5 days in 1 week, student will choose to spend time with friends. such as go to bars, exercising,  hanging out and making dinner with friends or just going out to a movie.
 
So, thats a little thing that i want to share with you. i'm sorry if this is not realy good. see you on the next post

Resource : from what i heard from my lecturers

MARRIAGE WITH DIFFERENT RELIGION

MARRIAGE WITH DIFFERENT RELIGION

by : Nurul

Do you really pay attention for this topics? because in this topic, i will talk about marriage with different religion. is it be able to do?. This time i'm going to tell you about the law of marriage according to islam. i've got this opinion from many sources.then I took the outline from several sources about interfaith marriage law, so,this is the result.
From the latest opinion of the scholars, marriage is forbidden in the religion in Islam. in fact, Islam men are allowed to marry non-Muslim women, however, after considering that interfaith marriage more harm than good, then the clergy Indonesia stated that interfaith marriage is unlawful.Strictly speaking, the Muhammadiyah scholars state that a Muslim woman is forbidden to marry non-Muslim men. 
This is in accordance with the letter of al-Baqarah verse 221, Based on the verse, the believers men are also forbidden to marry non-Muslim women and Muslim women forbidden to marry her guardian with the male non-Muslim.Ulama Muhammadiyah declared interfaith marriage also forbidden in Christianity. Nature of the agreement, the book replicates 7:3, Christians are also forbidden to marry a different religion. "In 1974 Law No. 1 of article 2, paragraph 1 also stated that:" Marriage is valid, if done according to the laws of each religion or belief. "
so the conclusion of interfaith marriage in Islam is forbidden and invalid. to marry someone of Islam, someone must first convert to Islam so that marriage valid under the law or religion. I hope this discussion can be useful. thank you.

resource :  http://www.republika.co.id/berita/ensiklopedia-islam/fatwa/10/05/01/113862-hukum-nikah-beda-agama-dalam-islam-dan-kristen-samakah-

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR SELF CONFIDENCE IN SOCIALIZATION

HOW TO INCREASE YOUR SELF CONFIDENCE IN SOCIALIZATION
by : Nurul


Now, my topics is about how to increase your self confidence in socialization. Self confidence is the most important thing in our life. For example,we can't have many friends if we don't have self confidence to socialize. And how we can be successful if we don't have self confidence to improve our selves? so, in my topics right now, i'm going to tell you how to build our confidence to have many friends or socialize with people around us. This topics is from many perspective that i think good for increase self-confidence.The other people may have different perspective with what i'm going to tell you.

The first, you need to be aware about your character or your personality, your strength and your weakness. You don't need to force your self about something that you can't do,start to open minded and don't be so shy to make friends. I mean, not to get much attention, but you just need to believe on your self that you are a good person,people can trust you,and don't judge people because its sucks. Try to taking time to remind yourself of your positive traits and accomplishments,Positive affirmations,Taking on more happy, confident body language (standing up straight, smiling),Dressing up and making yourself look nice.

The second, stop thinking about how to be a perfectionist. Everyone is not perfect. you need to have self-acceptance. Everyone gets things wrong sometimes, and it is not a sign that they are useless. Stop thinking that you can't do something before you try. Don't make your self-confidence depends on your accomplishment, because it will crush you inside-out.

The third, start to talk with people around you. You can find some speculation to discuss with someone, but make sure that you are already know about what you are talking about, in other word, don't talk like you know everything, because people don't like someone who talk too much and make no sense.You can increase your self-confidence by working to improve in any areas where you have weaknesses that bother you, it maybe give a little helps to improve your self.

I hope this is useful for you guys. Thank you.

Resource : http://www.succeedsocially.com/selfesteem

MEANING OF COLORS IN PSYCHOLOGY

MEANING OF COLORS IN PSYCHOLOGY
 by : Nurul

Oke guys,this time topic is about the meaning of colors in psychology. I'm sure that you must be already heard about the meaning of colors from many sources and different opinion. But this time i'm going to share about what i know of the meaning of colors in psychology that affects people behavior.Maybe not really trust it,but this is just for knowledge. Okey,let's talk about it.

Colors has a different meaning from each other. According to psychology, the colors that someone like will be describe what kind of a person they are. The first colors is red. Red is the color of passion,courage,action or also self-confidence.Red also decribe someone feeling angry orconscious and subconscious. Blue, blue is the color of peace, trustworthy and commited. Blue is also describe as cool,calming,emotional and moody.  Green, green is the color of nature and refresed. someone who like green likes to give someone helps or care givers. Orange, in psychology, people who like orange likes to have adventures because they are energetics and outdoorsy.  Pink, as we know, pink is the color of girly and silly. Someone who likes pink have a soft heart and happy person (i think). Purple, purple is the color of imagination. People who like purple likes to strive for self improvement. They like to immagination and immature, they could be creative and individual. Yellow, yellow is the colors of cheerful,but also describing impatience,critism and cowardise. Grey, it is the color of compromise, because it sits between the extremes black and white.Grey is a perfect neutral. and then white. White is the colors of perfection,wa can see it on someone who like white color, they are a perfect person. White describe a purity,innocence,wholeness and completion. And the last color that i want to tell you is black. According psychology, black is color of hidden,secretive and unknown person.Its like hidden itself from the word. Black is the darkest colors ever in the world,its always describe as a bad or dark thing. Oke guys,thats all that i want to share with you.I hope you enjoying our blog.

Resources : http://www.empower-yourself-with-color-psychology.com/meaning-of-colors.html

INTERNET USAGE IN DAILY LIFE

This is my fifth post. the topic is about internet usage in daily life.

"search engine" one of functions in internet access"

So, i think that internet access has positive effects and negative effects. But, how do they access their internet?
In this globalization era, most of us already used gadget to access the internet such as: mobile phone, modem, WIFI connection, and many others.

If we can access the internet, there are must be had positive and negative effects.
The positive effects are: we can get more information from internet access, helps people to make their works easier. so we don't have to open many books to study, and to contact people who far away from us. there are many others positive effects for internet usage.
And what about the negative effects?

The negative effects that happen in social life are like addicted with the internet. So, they spend most of their time just to access the internet, they access the internet to search something that shouldn't be searched like pornography, and there are still many of the effects.

In the end the internet usage in daily life depends on the people who use it. If the internet usage will bring the positive or negative effects.

References
https://www.tru.ca/cpj/essay.html

Gypsy people

what's in your mind when you see this picture?

yes,she is a beautiful woman. But, do not get fool by her look. she could be one of deadly woman in the world. she is a gypsy girl. Gypsies (or Romani, as they call themselves, the Gypsy word for "men") originated in northern India 1,000 years ago. Their language, called Romani, is undoubtedly related to Hindu and other Indian languages. Their image has always been controversial in the eyes of the Europeans: in some novels and movies they are depicted as extremely hospitable, careless, nomadic beings, animating sadness or happiness through singing and dancing. The other image is that of unadapted, dirty, untrustworthy people. 
When gypsies arrived, they were strangers for them, with their dark skin, black eyes and hair, clothing, habits and language. Moreover, gypsies remained isolated, a habit probably inherited from the caste system of India. But curiosity would be replaced by lack of trust within a few decades.In their nomadic life, gypsies turned to skilled blacksmiths and traders, but also talented artists, while many women pretend having supernatural powers to make a living. Their lifestyle also impeded too much cultural connections with those who were not gypsies (called gadje in Rromani or pallo in Calo, the Gypsy Spanish variant). Still, gypsies adopted the religion of the majority in their area. In Europe, they are Christians, whilst in the Middle East gypsies, called Dom, are Muslims.

Antar ajong ceremony

By : Nurul

This time, i'm going to tell you about a traditional ritual ceremony which spread out in paloh, tanah hitam, sambas regency. Antar ajong is a traditional ritual ceremony to plant paddy that's carried out every year in the planting season. It is usually held in the middle year around june or july. Why this is held is because of habit and tradition. this ceremony is carrying a boat to the sea with a few things inside the boat. start with called evil spirits and then release the boat to the sea.

People believe that this ceremony  can prevent the public from all the negative things such as disease outbreaks, pest plants, and natural disaster. It's also a sign to began the planting season. After the ceremony was held, people who lived in the village are not allowed to slaughter any animal. And the risk of the tradition banned was violated.

This is a picture of Antar Ajong ceremony...


Reference : http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f119/yuenis/yuenis/IMG_1567.jpg

How do ant communicate?

By : NURUL
 

This time topic's is how do ants communicate with each other. They do not talk like human. As far as i know, they're communicate with their antenna. When they meet each other, they will touch each other to make point. With touching each other, they can find out where they've been before, is there any food that they found somewhere ,or knowing where is the predators in that territory.so they just need to put their front legs on with each other to communicate.

Average of ants do interaction  40 times, and about 10% from ants can do more than 100 contact with other ants. A group from stanford university also did a reservation the reason that make an ants have more inclination in team work and socialization with other ants.

Refrences
http://www.apasih.com/2011/04/beginilah-cara-semut-berkomunikasi-dan.html
http://www.whyzz.com/how-do-ants-communicate

Snow & Ice Festival — Harbin, China

By : Nurul








This is another festival around the world that i want to tell you,it is called snow and ice festival which is held in harbin,china. the harbin festival is the largest snow and ice festival in the world. this festval begin in 1963.Harbin  is located in northeast china and receives cold winter wind from siberia. The average temperature in summer is 21.2 degrees Celsius, -16.8 degrees Celsius in winter. Annual low temperatures below -35C are not uncommon.

 Officially, the festival starts January 5th and lasts one month. Ice and Snow World features illuminated full size buildings made from blocks of 2–3 feet thick crystal clear ice directly taken from the Songhua River. There are ice lantern park touring activities held in many parks in the city. Winter activities in the festival include Yabuli alpine skiing, winter-swimming in the songhua river, and the ice-lantern exhibition in Zhaolin Garden.

refences :  http://www.buzzfeed.com/ashleyperez/23-world-festivals-you-wont-want-to-miss
                http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harbin_International_Ice_and_Snow_Sculpture_Festival