ICE! 2014: Christmas at the Gaylord National Resort at the National Harbor in Prince George's County, Maryland

Dave and Kathy ordered tickets for Gaylord National's annual ICE! exhibit at National Harbor. Visitors tour an icy wonderland made of 5,000 blocks of ice weighing two million pounds. The displays are handcrafted by forty master ice sculptors from Harbin, China.  The artisans arrived in mid-October and created this year's exhibit in just a month.

We followed the signs
to ICE!









We are wearing extra layers of clothing with hats, mittens, gloves.

Still, we are are given over-sized

winter coats to wear as

we tour the exhibit.

Aren't we cute?

The only question is,
can we move?

This year's exhibit is

Frosty the Snowman.

Frosty's a snowman, like any other.

He has a button nose & two

eyes made out of coal.

Professor Hinkle's magic hat

 is blown off his head by a

 guest of wind...

Itttt's veeery ccooolld in hheerre.  Nine degree air blows across the ice sculptures.   My body is warm.  My face and gloved hands are cold  I keep pulling my hat down and balling my hands into fists to stay warm.

... & lands on Frosty's head.

His first words are: Happy
Birthday!

Frosty leads the children on a

parade through the town.

As happy as Frosty is to be "all living," he's in a place that's too warm for him.  Frosty must head to the North Pole, where it's cold all year round.

We enter Town Square.

Everyone can take a ride

down an ice slide.

Eric waits his turn.

The oversize jackets make great impromptu sleds.  

I marvel at the displays' colors.

The displays are very carefully

planned.  

Each color of ice is made

knowing exactly how much the 

artists need to complete their work.

Karen rides Frosty as they

flee from Professor Hinkle,

who wants his magic hat back.

Professor Hinkle traps Karen and Frosty in a greenhouse.  After Frosty melts into a puddle, Professor Hinkle can get his magic hat back.  

Karen cries over the melted
Frosty.

Santa Claus assures her that
Frosty can never melt away
completely,because he's made
of Christmas snow.

 The cold, winter wind  brings Frosty back to life.

Santa Claus takes Frosty with

him to the North Pole....

Frosty will be back again, someday....

We watch an ice sculptor
carefully carving ice.

Each winter, more than 2,000 ice ice sculptors create a massive 100 acre walk through Ice Park and a full size Ice City from ice blocks in Harbin, China.  Gaylord National Resort brought 40 of Harbin's most talented ice sculptors to the United States to showcase their talents.

The results are amazing!  Thank you Dave and Kathy for finding this amazing exhibit for us
to tour.