Sympathy for the Citizens...

Really, really classy Snake art, don't you think?

Hello, YRC readers.  It's time to grab your coat and get your hat, leave your worries on the doorstep!

Why, you might ask.  We are about to go on the move here at the YRC.  Why are we moving?   Nooo, it's not those political people again!  

Here in People's Republic we are in the middle of the festival of Chun Yun, AKA the Lunar New year and AKA China's annual Spring Festival.

The Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New year, is the most important traditional festival of family reunions and it is the BIGGEST, baby.  

Background:  The return home is mandatory.  Those unfortunate Chinese main-landers who do return to family laden with hong bao are haunted the entire following year by evil family spirits who don't pick up after themselves, hog the bathroom and are very critical of the cooking. 

The Big Move Begins...

The Year of the Snake's Big Move began last week in freezing weather, with some 700 million people, or nearly half the nation's population, expected to travel.

Just as a reminder, in true People's Republic social style,  everyone in the People's Republic goes on vacation at the same time. This means the cities empty out (Beijing loses half its population, for example) and the countryside fills back up again.  China's Ministry of Transport (MOT) estimates that almost three billion passenger trips will be made during the period.

Time to go, Americas...

"So what" you murmur as you rattle the ice cubes in your second morning cocktail, YRC style.

It is a matter of perspective, dear friends.   Think about it for a moment:  there are 700 million people going into motion during the same time period.

That is roughly the same as if the ENTIRE population of the Americans (North, Central and South) were to leave to go on vacation for two weeks on THE SAME DAY!  Imagine the chaos as every Brazilian, Canadian, Texan, Chilean, Mexican, (did we say Canadian?), Alaskan, Greenlander, Peruvian, etc. all went to the train station at the same time and headed out for Grandma's?  And, to bring this further into perspective, the vast majority of travel is not by car, or plane, or motorcycle....it is by train.

Real PR of C Holiday long-haul train.

So, no getting up early, packing up the Family Truckster and heading out at dawn so you can beat the traffic to Grandma's on Thanksgiving in the arduous three-hour drive. This isn't no beach trip.  This is no sissy skiing in Aspen.  This is no taking the RV up to Reno for a few days.  No, this is serious travel: it is usually a 12-hour journey with standing room only.

We at the YRC have decided we need to be...well, nicer.   We need to calm down, chill out and show some true compassion.  The Chinese traditionally have 18 levels of hell, and it is clear they have one here in this life.  We need to have some Sympathy for the Citizens...

And you too will have one more hell in this life when the YRC returns next week.  Until then, stand up straight and fly right!