Central Street

A 1,450m street hailed as "Asia's No. 1 street" (rose with the 1898 Chinese Eastern Railway), 71 European-style buildings (four schools: Renaissance / Baroque / Eclecticism / Art Nouveau), bread-stone pavement (the "Golden Road" horseshoe-silver legend); Modern (Madier) popsicles (a 1906 time-honored brand, hot sellers even in winter) + Tados Russian cuisine. The building of the Chinese Eastern Railway in 1898 spurred Harbin's rise, and the 1,450-meter Central Street emerged in response. Seventy-one European-style buildings line the street, with Renaissance, Baroque, Eclecticism, and Art Nouveau — four schools sharing one street — earning it the title of "Asia's No. 1 street." The road is paved with bread-shaped cobblestones; legend has it that the wage for laying one stone equaled the price of a loaf of bread, hence the "Golden Road" horseshoe-silver legend. The time-honored Modern popsicle, opened in 1906, keeps its century-old recipe unchanged — even in -20°C winters everyone holds one — while Russian restaurants such as Tados carry on the flavors of the railway era with borscht and kvass. At night the string lights set the European facades aglow, and in winter street-side ice and snow sculptures keep you company — Harbin's true "city living room."

Getting there: Metro Line 2, Central Street Station