The bed army: Chinese university turns gymnasium into a giant dorm for poor students' parents



At first glance it looks as if these makeshift sleeping quarters are housing hundreds of victims of some terrible disaster.



But a closer look reveals them to be parents of Chinese university students, who unable to wrench themselves away from their children, have bedded down in a gym to keep their offspring company for their first night away from home.



The scene at the Central China Normal University, in Wuhan, saw 350 doting mothers and fathers stretching out on mats laid out on the floor in an effort to make the transition as painless as possible.

Family affair: Hundreds of parents bed down in a draughty Chinese auditorium to keep their children company on the first day of university

With the number of university students in China increasing rapidly in recent years, huge numbers of parents will be preparing themselves for such nights in draughty auditoriums.



In 1998 only 1.08million students attended university, compared to over 17million in 2003.



Line-up: The parents lie in an orderly queue as they attempt to ease their children into life away from home



