Editor's Note:
Three Russian girls, who study in Dalian, Northeast China’s Liaoning Province, chose to take the train home for the holidays this year.
Squeezed into cramped quarters they experienced a special journey home, departing from Dalian and passing through Harbin and Heihe before finally crossing into Russia.
One of the girls falls asleep using a small table as her pillow while her friends pass the time by listening to music and playing with their smartphones at 11 pm on January 13. Photo: CFP 
One of the girls covers her nose with her hand to block the smell of instant noodles and food from other passengers permeating the cramped carriage. Photo: CFP 
One of the girls stands at the service desk, hoping to upgrade to a sleeping berth on January 14. Their K7033 train departed at 8:15 pm from Harbin Station, taking about 11 hours to arrive in Heihe at 7:12 am the next morning. Photo: CFP 
One of the three girls falls asleep in the hard seat carriage at midnight after most of the passengers got off at Heihe Station on January 14. The trio managed to secure only two sleeping berth tickets, leaving one of them to stay behind in the hard seat carriage. Photo: CFP
