A slow train in Southwest China possessing its own study room has attracted much attention from netizens     1     (recent).

The train No 5609/5610, running between Chongqing and Xiushan county, is     2     public-welfare “slow train”. In some carriages,   some seats have been replaced with desks and chairs next to the windows to transform them into “study carriages” for passengers in need. A lot of inspirational slogans can     3     (see) throughout the carriages.

In    4     (add) to No 5609/5610, other “slow trains” have been upgraded (升级) with “study carriages”, including No 5619/5620 and 5633/5634,     5     run along the Chengdu-Kunming Railway. Students from nearby schools often take the train between school and home. The trains are their “school buses” and many passengers use their travel time to complete homework.

On train No Z150, a    6     (transform) “book bar” carriage has been welcomed by college students. There are nearly 400 universities and colleges in the cities along the line,     7     (make) train No Z150 the first choice for most students on those campuses. Since 2015, the train’s dining car         8     (be) open for free at night to provide returning students with a lending library, free tea    9     other services. These small     10     (measure) taken by the railway department are a welcome comfort for passengers in need of a relaxing place to continue their studies.

In China, traveling by train is a common way to visit new places and go back to one’s hometown during holidays. But in the US, traveling by train is almost an ancient tradition, although it wasn’t always that way.

The US railway system started to grow in 1826, with many railway     1     (company) starting up and competing with each other to build new railway routes. Trains became a symbol of progress, with New York City’s Grand Central Station becoming a major     2     (culture) landmark.

But eventually, railways     3     (replace) by highways as “car culture” took over the US. China would go on to adopt trains even more quickly and     4     (wide) than the US. China’s railway network connects the entire country,     5     (allow) people to travel with ease. This is especially obvious during Chunyun — when China’s train stations are crowded with thousands of people     6     are trying to get home.

I had never traveled by train until I     7     (move) to China. My first trip by train was     8     Beijing to Tianjin by high-speed train. It was     9     (amaze) how quickly I could get there — just half     10     hour.