Bittersweet Spring Festival

Editor's note: Since time immemorial, Spring Festival has been a season for family bonding, spreading good cheer, sharing, caring and giving. Especially for the urban young or migrant workers who make the annual trip back to their hometown, the seven-day holiday is the best time for a happy get-together with family, and also a respite from daily pressure. But inevitably, the holiday season can be a combination of frustrations and joy. The travel rush, the need to give gifts, and pressure to get married -- many Chinese face these and similar problems.

Dozens of international students from Nanjing Agriculture University experienced the preparation for the coming Spring Festival, which falls on Jan 31 this year. 

Zhang Xiaoming, a migrant worker from North China's Shanxi province said that he just hopes for a happy family reunion - and that getting back pay is not a priority.

College student Sun Weibo is riding his bicycle from Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi province, to his hometown Shangqiu, Henan province, in Central China, almost 800 kilometers, on Jan 21, 2013.

Photographic portrait of Spring Festival 

People spent time on reading books at library during the period of Spring Festival.

To many Chinese people, traditional snacks are part of the Spring Festival and the taste of hometown. 

Officials said about 100,000 people lined the streets to watch the year of the horse parade.

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Spring Festival preparations 

Villagers in SW China share the wealth

If you stay at home, embarrassing questions about kids or love life from old folks are common. If you go out to visit relatives and friends, you should prepare a fat red envelope. If you dread all that and just want to get together with old friends, you'll probably have to talk about how much you achieved in the past year, a subtle form of flaunting and peer competition. What are you most concerned about as Spring Festival approaches? 

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Spring Festival travel rush begins

42 million flights to deal with travel rush 

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Lunar New Year's torments

Home-going headaches

Holidays a stressful time for single offspring  

Mom's regret

Celebrate true spirit of festival