Houhai ice rink is now closed. A worker is seen packing up while the ice is fenced off from visitors. Mr. Wang, who sells kites nearby, said that the Houhai ice rink closed a lot earlier this year. Beijing’s ice rinks closed right after lichun this year, a lunar calendar date that signalled the beginning of spring. Mr. Wang recalled a time when ice rinks would stay open well after lichun, sometimes as long as an extra 15 days. He also said the area available for skating isn’t as big as it used to be. When we were talking to Mr. Wang, several tourists interrupted to asked where they could ice skate. Mr. Wang told them to find indoor ice rinks – a type of “luxury” water consumption business that NGO Friends of Nature lobbied the Beijing government to discourage.