During Spring Festival every year, migrant workers form a "travel rush" to go back to their hometowns and reunite with their families. But there are also some who stay in the city for various reasons. Li Nan follows a migrant worker and his family, who chose not to return to their hometown this year.

Spring Festival is a time for family reunions. Most migrant workers have already returned home from the big cities they work to meet with their families for the only time of the year.

But some have stayed.

Su Guilin, migrant worker from Sichuan said: "I am staying in Beijing this Spring Festival because I haven't been paid yet from a project I worked on. As well, my hometown is too far away. I need to get back to work in a week's time. There likely would not be enough time."

Su Guilin comes from a village in Sichuan Province, almost 2,000 kilometers from Beijing.

His wife and daughters came to live with him a few years ago. The family is now living in a suburb of the capital. Celebrating the new year in Beijing, they decorated their home with red lanterns and traditional couplets. Su still misses his parents and siblings back in his hometown.

Su said: "I am planning to return for my father's birthday this year. And the kids want to spend the next New Year's in our hometown."

Su Qin, the eldest daughter, works as a waitress in a nearby restaurant. Although she has already been used to the modernness of Beijing, she misses the festive atmosphere back home during the new year period.

Su's Daugher Su Qin said: "Back home, people in my village all get together, eat and drink to celebrate the Spring Festival. I can play with my friends who I grew up with. The village is full of joys. But here in Beijing, we don't have many friends, plus some have already gone back. So the holiday this year is quiet. "

Large cities, like Beijing and Shanghai, are still in need of laborers even around the lunar new year holidays. Many migrant workers, just like Su's family, are working in the food-catering industry and other sectors while we celebrate the new year with our families.

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