Creative ways of returning home

With crowds rushing home for the Chinese New Year, some people have refused to travel using conventional methods. Be it the difficulty in obtaining train tickets, the need to save some money, or the desire to experience a unique journey, they all made it home, in their own way.

The train is the transportation method of choice for most people returning home, especially since the introduction of high-speed lines. But what if there is only one train taking you home, and it takes 34 hours? This was the problem for Mr. Wang, who is pursuing his doctor's degree in Shanghai. His hometown of Deyang is located in Sichuan Province in the country's southwest. To make the journey faster, Wang divided it into 8 sections, which meant 7 transfers along the way. This enabled Wang to get home in 20 hours, with a stop in Hankou in Hubei province for his favorite delicacy: duck neck.

Xu Guozheng was not in a hurry to be home. The 660-kilometer bus trip from Hangzhou in Zhejiang province to Linyi in Shandong province took him seven days and 35 bus rides. He spent a whole week working out the details before leaving. In the end, the trip cost him a total of only 140 yuan.

Qin Jie and his six friends aimed for a more challenging trip. They cycled 1,000 kilometers to get home, going from Guangdong to Hunan. Two of them pulled out halfway due to injury, while the other five arrived safely after eight days on their bikes. Qin said their bicycle plan came not as a result of sold out train tickets, or to save money, but just as their moto goes: ease the travel rush, build up our health.

Among other creative transportation methods, a student gave up on buying a train ticket, instead opting for a 2-day group tour to Hangzhou; and a boy from a university in Anhui province flew to Thailand for a short stay before heading home in Lanzhou. The detour allowed him to relax, and helped avoid domestic competition for tickets.