Hefei, the capital of Anhui province, is a city with an over two thousand-year history. Sitting at the crossroads of north and south China, Hefei is an exciting merger of both cultures in language, daily lifestyle, and food. Chao Hu (Lake Chao) a large freshwater preserve, borders the south of the city while mountains filled with bamboo and tea can be found an hour’s drive west. Hefei today is a “large little city”. Hefei is a metropolitan area of 10 million people that has not lost its small town, homey feel.  Strong urban planning has made the rapid growth less sprawling. The city is supported by a wide public transportation network with subway lines and an extensive bus system linking the downtown with the municipal and provincial centers. From the early days of the People’s Republic, Hefei was designated as an educational center and is regarded as one of the top places in China for higher education with its crowning jewel, the University of Science and Technology (USTC). This has resulted in the city developing into a strong center for technology, software, artificial intelligence, genomics, and other cutting-edge research. These factors help Hefei to earn the moniker, China’s “city on the hill”.