Sometimes we take for granted what we have. Having been born in an environment where we were able to get an education, employment and some sort of security, we have no sense of perspective about how hard it is in other countries, and cultures, where things are a lot more primitive. In comparison to most Chinese workers, we can consider ourselves privileged.
This interesting, but disturbing, documentary by Lixin Fan is an eye opener for it takes us to an ancient land where most of the manufacturing for the world is made today. There are huge factories in far away places where people migrate in order to make a living. Working under conditions that are deplorable, at best, the only incentive is to travel back to one's birth place to celebrate the traditional Chinese New Year with the folks who stay behind and who are able to have a better life with the help of the family members that went away.
This annual exodus involve about 130 million people that use whatever means of transportation possible in order to make the pilgrimage home. Most of the travel is by rail. Reservations are hard to come by, so if anyone is planning to go home, it must be carefully prepared. The couple at the center of the story work in the Southern city of Guangzhou, their final destination is a rural town in the Sichuan province, a trip that will take them back to an older mother that has stayed to rear their two children, a girl, Quin, and a boy.
The documentary spans about three years. We follow the couple laden with goods for their family back home in crowded accommodations. The sad part comes when the couple decide to bring Qin to Guangzhou. The sights of the city prove to be a lure for the young woman; she is like all the new generation children that have no sense of sacrifice, to her father's chagrin.
"Last Train Home" by the Canadian-Chinese Lixin Fan gives us a slice of reality about another culture that is hard for us to understand; one good reason for counting our blessings and being thankful for what we have.
This interesting, but disturbing, documentary by Lixin Fan is an eye opener for it takes us to an ancient land where most of the manufacturing for the world is made today. There are huge factories in far away places where people migrate in order to make a living. Working under conditions that are deplorable, at best, the only incentive is to travel back to one's birth place to celebrate the traditional Chinese New Year with the folks who stay behind and who are able to have a better life with the help of the family members that went away.
This annual exodus involve about 130 million people that use whatever means of transportation possible in order to make the pilgrimage home. Most of the travel is by rail. Reservations are hard to come by, so if anyone is planning to go home, it must be carefully prepared. The couple at the center of the story work in the Southern city of Guangzhou, their final destination is a rural town in the Sichuan province, a trip that will take them back to an older mother that has stayed to rear their two children, a girl, Quin, and a boy.
The documentary spans about three years. We follow the couple laden with goods for their family back home in crowded accommodations. The sad part comes when the couple decide to bring Qin to Guangzhou. The sights of the city prove to be a lure for the young woman; she is like all the new generation children that have no sense of sacrifice, to her father's chagrin.
"Last Train Home" by the Canadian-Chinese Lixin Fan gives us a slice of reality about another culture that is hard for us to understand; one good reason for counting our blessings and being thankful for what we have.