Children have fun at Sophia Fountain Square, a landmark of Harbin, the capital city of Heilongjiang province, in  the hottest summer days.

Sophia Square is located at the juncture of Zhaolin Street, Diduan Street and Toulong Street in Daoli district. It contains four fountains: a rectangular fountain area at the center of the square, a European fountain area, an east-west fountain area and a north-south area.

The music fountain show here occurs three times a day at 10am, 4pm and 7pm. The show lasts 15 minutes. On holidays, an additional show is offered at 1pm. The lights and water routines synchronize with the music. The water can reach as high as 38 meters. A worker said that they choose different songs every day in order to keep things interesting.

After the show, the fountains shoot water less than 1 meter high so people can walk in and cool off. Kids wearing raincoats can play in the water, while adults can take off their shoes, stand in the shallow pool and pose for photos.

The monthly water consumption of the fountain is 2,100 tons. To save water, a return flume system was built this April so that the fountain water can be recycled, sterilized and reused.