Cold air was the first welcome present to me from the city of Heihe.

Even though it was still late September, I had to put on a sweater as soon as I left Heihe Airport. In the evening, the temperature can drop to as low as 5 C, reminding everyone that this is the northernmost area in China.

It's easy to see that Heihe is a green city, since vegetation covers nearly 50 percent of it. The leaves of the trees, most of which are birches, have not yet fallen, and the hills around the city are colored with green, yellow and red. I was astonished by this beautiful first impression of the city.