The Russian Connection

In 2004, when I first arrived in Harbin, the Russians in the Far East were all but broke, and Russia’s economy, especially compared to China’s, was in the toilet. The only Russians to be found apart from the rare student or businessman were hookers and cleaning women roaming the streets, literally cleaning toilets. Harbin was close to Russia, but not that close, and nobody around my campus spoke Russian. Yet the Russian role in Harbin was historic: during the Manchu (Qing) Dynasty they had been given right of way to build a railroad (the Trans-Siberian Railroad of Dr. Zhivago fame) to Vladivostok through Harbin between 1896 and 1905, when the Japanese took over. By 1917 White Russians and Russian Jews were pouring into the area to escape the Revolution, only to be overrun once again by the Japanese in 1932, whose occupation lasted through World War II. ¹ Few Russians remained in the former Manchuria today, but during their occupation Harbin had the largest Russian population outside the Soviet Union and they pretty much built the city. In addition to the beautiful Daoli Zhang Yang Da Jie (Big Center Street) and downtown historic districts there were even to this day numerous Russian dachas, farmhouses and churches scattered around the countryside near Harbin. But prior to 2006, my own encounters with Russians apart from my travels to the border were few and far between.