Harbin Normal University

The "Ice City" on the Songhua River — once called the Oriental Moscow for its Russian-built churches and boulevards — Harbin hosts Harbin Institute of Technology, one of China's elite engineering schools, plus Harbin Medical University, whose English-taught MBBS draws large South Asian and African cohorts. Winters are the story: −20°C days, frozen rivers and the world-famous Ice and Snow Festival.

City guide: climate, halal food, healthcare & rent →