Photos capture a mass homecoming exodus from Dhaka for Eid al-Fitr holiday

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AP) — Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka hums with work and noise. Now, it is beginning to empty.

Millions of internal migrants are preparing to return home for Eid al-Fitr, the festival marking the end of Ramadan.

A child dressed in celebratory bright pink rides atop a sea of people trying to board a ferry. The overnight boats glow with bright signs bearing the names of destination cities that travelers call home.

At Dhaka’s railway stations, the rush is equally chaotic. Travelers squeeze through narrow windows while others climb onto train roofs. Families carry bags over their heads that are packed with gifts for parents, siblings and neighbors.

For a moment, Dhaka pauses. A metropolis that swells daily with labor and ambition also empties once each year for ritual and family. The city drew them with jobs, schools and opportunity but releases them back to villages and towns across Bangladesh.

Each journey is ordinary and extraordinary.

These photographs capture the motion and joy of Eid as more than a holiday, but also a homecoming for millions.