On Ningguo Road, crayfish shells pile up in red heaps on summer tables, and a short ride away Lei Street keeps its food stalls busy late into the night. Hefei makes sense block by block. In the old center, Li Hongzhang's former residence sits among the shoppers of Huaihe Road, and Xiaoyaojin Park covers the river ford of a famous Three Kingdoms battle.
Farther out, glass towers rise around Swan Lake, and Chao Lake opens wide to the southeast. Summers are hot and humid with heavy rain, while winters turn damp and cold. A Local Friend can take you around their own neighborhood, the one that never makes the guidebooks, and show you how Hefei lives between the sights.
