If you want to see large numbers of Giant Pandas interacting with each other, there's nowhere on earth quite like the Giant Panda Breeding Research Base outside Chengdu. Words cannot describe how amazing our day here was. We saw baby pandas in a nursery. The rolly-polly balls of fur were in cribs and all! Photography was prohibited in the nursery to protect the cubs' underdeveloped eyes. We saw youngsters running around the "Panda Kindergarten" and we saw adults living a rich (but slightly less frenetic) life in other enclosures. The keepers were constantly removing and rebuilding structures in the enclosures to keep the pandas on their toes and give them new places to climb. Bill held a cub, Yuan Xiao, for several minutes. The option was not advertised at the park but we asked since we had read about it--you just have to ask and they tell you where to go. It was cheap for us but more than the average monthly salary for many people in the area. We felt a little guilty. The money went to a good cause, though--trying to save the pandas.
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This was the first panda we saw. I think we interrupted something important.
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Having fun already!
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This enclosure was near the entrance--this is the biggest crowd we saw all day. You get very close to the pandas.
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Happy to be here
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Following each other around
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There were a handful of peacocks running around too.
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Sleeping. They waited until they thought the food might arrive before they started stirring
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Starting to wake up.
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Up in a tree
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Through the leaves
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There are many red pandas at the base as well.
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Running around
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Peeking out
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Hi!
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Bamboo!
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"But I want to stay up in the tree!"
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Yum!
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Another peacock strutting around
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Time to relax
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yawn!
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aww
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Watching Giselle very closely
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Hopping on the swing
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Swinging!
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Puzzling over something
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the good life
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greedy
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Intensity
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Bamboo Buffet
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Where'd all the Bamboo go??
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In search of more bamboo
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Sniff Sniff
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Keeping low to the ground.
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wrestling
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Ready for another attack
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Panda Pile
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Upside down!
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Getting ready to meet Yuan Xiao. Bill was preoccupied trying to get the gloves on since they were WAAAY too small. He hardly noticed the keeper arrive with the panda!
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This other keeper's primary job during this process was to supply apples. It's an important job.
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He arrived!
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Yuan Xiao was relaxing right into Bill's arms
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refill
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mmm.
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tickle tickle!
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Hey, that panda has a Giselle for a nose!
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horseplay
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Organized wrestling in gym class
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Bill with his new pin. As if holding a panda isn't enough, they also gave us a pin and a bookmark!