Panda- cuddly, lovable, giant teddies

Who doesn’t want one? They are so so cute.  We have to fight to get to take a photo. The domestic tourists i.e the Chinese tourists outnumber us foreign tourists by 10-1 and it was a challenge to get close or to avoid including loads of people in your shot. Can you spot the panda in this shot?

Chengdu is famous for the Giant Panda  Breeding Research Base which is of course a “must see”.  Another early start; we drove about an hour to visit these intriguing and rare animals.  It was a huge site. We took a trolley to the top of the site and walked around the Base.

Our guide provided us with lots of information – for example – if a panda does not want to play ball, s/he would simply turn its backside to you and we saw a few of those like the one in this photo!

No-one can tell if a panda is pregnant until the baby arrives. In the wild, if a  panda has twins,  the panda mum would keep the stronger of the two. This does not of course happen in the Breeding Base as they would rescue and look after the new born baby panda. We saw the “clinic”where such  new born pandas were being cared for. 

These giant pandas eat tons and tons of food – they practically only eat and sleep! Good life. 

I was convinced this panda here was looking at us all and wondering “why are they starring at me?” “Leave me in peace so I can get on with eating more bamboo!”

This one was so laid back that I was sure he would shortly be horizontal. He had no care in the world, unlike his mate who was more bothered about our presence. 

Yeap – I am wearing panda headband!  And surrounded by domestic tourists who were trying to take selfies with the pandas in the background. 

I found it fascinating to watch the pandas  climb trees. They were slow, gentle and most elegant.

Naturally, most people could not resist buying one of the soft cuddly pandas. I was no exception and I love my panda- beautiful. But I have competition.  My grand children love it too!

It was a pleasant visit to this Research Base where they do very good work to save these beautiful creatures.

I must say that after a while, I got bored with walking around to see yet another panda! All look very similar to me. Maybe it was the heat and fatigue!

Is it a ‘must see”? Most people would say yes. The jury is out for me. It was ok  as part of a tour but as a single destination sight seeing, perhaps not. Having said that, it is more likely to be included as part of a tour package to China as it is highly regarded and promoted both in and outside China.

5 Replies to “Panda- cuddly, lovable, giant teddies”

  • Molly
    I loved your blog and also enjoyed visiting the pandas myself.
    Now in Singapore also suffering from
    A cold.

  • A well written, articulate story. The writings and illustrations take you on a journey you wish you were there.

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