The cook

Yang Hua has worked as a cook in Beijing for 11 years. Though he will travel home to Bozhou, Anhui province, for Spring Festival on Wednesday, his preparations for the journey started more than a month ago.

Early in January, he started shopping for gifts; he bought his parents and parents-in-law a pair of shoes eac

h, and his 7-year-old daughter will receive a toy dog.

"She wanted a toy dog that could 'speak', but it was too expensive. Instead, I bought a regular stuffed one," he said.

Yang works in a company canteen, earning about 4,000 yuan ($635) a month. His regular day starts at 6 am and lasts until about 2 pm.

The 37-year-old's journey home is never easy because he has to take a "green" train - the slowest on China's rail network - which leaves at 11pm and takes nine hours to cover the 750 kilometers between the capital and Bozhou.

"It's tiring. I always try to get a sleeper ticket, but I have never succeeded. Some people play cards during the journey, some watch TV on their phones, while others chat. It's too noisy to sleep, so I always stay awake, feeling dizzy and tired," he said, adding that the train is usually so crowded that some passengers sit in the toilet because it's the most spacious place.

Though he only managed to get a seat, not a sleeper bunk, he still considers himself lucky because this is the first year he has succeeded in buying a ticket on the first day they became available.

"I am clumsy at operating my phone. Every time I tried to get a ticket, I failed because I'm so slow, so I often had to mobilize friends and colleagues to help. They spent days checking the ticket-booking platform to see if anyone had returned a ticket that I could buy," he said.

Despite the hassle, he is always determined to go home for Spring Festival. He came to Beijing in 2007 with his wife, but she returned to Bozhou in 2011.

Yang stays in regular contact with his family, though. "I have video calls with my daughter at least four times a week," he said.

He has been considering going home for good. "I have paid social security contributions for nine years, so I still need to make payments for at least six more years before I can claim my pension. I have to keep working, so I can get my pension," he said.

He added that when that happens he plans to open a company that will provide wedding services in his hometown, and he has been making preparations for that.

Yang is fascinated by xiangsheng, also known as "crosstalk", a form of comedic dialogue, and he spends much of his free time writing and sometimes performing his work in small theaters.

He hopes to use his skills to amuse guests at weddings, so he works part time for a company that organizes ceremonies in Beijing, and has also learned flower arranging to further his dream.

"I am too far away from home - I want to be close to my family," he said.

By Hou Liqiang