Residents complain of crowds, costs, stress

BEIJING - Cao Hui, a Beijing native, does not like her hometown anymore because she encounters surging prices, unrelenting work pressures and crowds nearly everywhere she goes.

"The reason I'm still in this city is that my family is here," said Cao, a 24-year-old worker at a local institution. "Otherwise, I would leave."

Despite the government's efforts to make Beijing more accommodating to residents, many still find it hard to live there, according to a recent poll.