Known as the mountain city, Chongqing boasts an iconic landscape that is largely formed of hilly terrain. Despite rapid urbanization over the last 15 years, the city has somehow managed to seamlessly merge itself with the local landscape. Chongqing's development has accentuated the surrounding horizontal topography, giving the metropolis an aesthetically unique character. Along with the city's mountains, locals also characterize their city by water, as Chongqing is located at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers and is home to an active industrial port. The combination of mountain and water is an essential part of the city's culture and way of life, affecting everything from local cuisine to modes of transport. Relying on its rich natural hot spring resources, Chongqing is also recognized as "a city of Hot Springs".
Different from flourishing Shanghai and traditional Beijing, Chongqing has its own character. Life here is slower and more leisurely. Every day, many people can be seen drinking tea with friends along the riverbank, or playing Mahjong. Strangely, many people who live in this city have hot tempers, and a straight forward, open character. While they often speak loudly, they are very warm-hearted and are always happy to help others. The character of the locals probably has something to do with the spicy Chongqing food. From hotpot to snacks, it can be said that Chongqing people cannot eat a meal without chili.
Chongqing has a continuous GDP growth that maintains more than 10% growth rate. It is the fastest growing city in the first ten consecutive quarters in China. Rapid economic growth has given rise to a thriving business district, populated with a multitude of exciting companies, not only drawing an ever-increasing number of career-minded young Chinese, but also those from abroad. The city attracted nearly 300 "Fortune 500" companies to establish bases and under larger world economic pressures, presented positive economic development trends. This in combination with such an impressive preservation of nature makes Chongqing an ideal place for adventure-seeking young professionals to gain professional experience.