The Giant Pandas of Chengdu
The pandas! We saw the pandas! They were soooooooo very cute and the research and breeding base in Chengdu is such a nice place, with plenty of space for the pandas to romp around and munch on bamboo. Luckily, when we were there it wasn’t packed with tourists, either, so we were able to get right up close to the pandas and watch them eat and play and nap. Cuz that’s pretty much what pandas do all day.

The baby pandas- I think I counted at least 6 cubs- were really adorable and so playful, wrestling with each other and splashing in water and climbing on the playground/wooden log setup. The older pandas just lolled around eating, but they were cute, too. It’s funny to watch them try to run- they aren’t the most graceful creatures and they do this weird, uneven ga-dump-a-dump gallop across the grass. All in all, it was a great morning.
-Leah

The best part of the Chengdu Panda Research and Breeding Center? The huge butterfly exhibit.
No just kidding - but they do have this incredibly extensive collection of butterflies from all over the world. You know, glass cases full of dead butterflies with needles stuck through the their middles. All perfectly preserved and dead. And then they have photos of famous or prestigious/important butterfly enthusiasts… which is kind of like having photos of famous stamp collectors. It was kind of weird to have this huge butterfly collection at the world famous Panda Place.
As part of our packaged deal with the Panda visit, we also went to the Sichuan Opera - and while I have some photos and even some video - it’s not for this post - because the camera is upstairs and we’re having breakfast.
-Mark













