A Trip to Panda Mecca

Janet and I woke up early this morning in order to make it to Giant Panda Breeding and Research Center right outside of Chengdu.

The price of admission is around $4.50 USD and is probably the most fun thing that you can possibly do for $4.50.

The first thing you will notice about the Center is that it is probably the nicest zoo in all of China. Unfortunately, most zoos here keep their animals in small, dirty cages and can be a depressing site. Here the pandas are kept in very large yards that are full of trees, plants, and climbing structures designed for them. You want to make it to the morning feeding session, because at other times of the day the Pandas may be sleeping in parts of the yard that are too far away to see. There are no bars here, but rather a moat and hedge that keeps you out and the Pandas in.

The complex itself is also very large and required a long walk from the entrance before we were near the first Panda enclosures. As we rounded one bend, Janet and I were very excited to see our first Panda, sitting about 15 feet away and steadily chowing down on bamboo.

A few feet away was a second yard with a different Giant Panda enjoying his morning feast, which was prepared right next door at the Panda Kitchen (see pictures of the signs once I can upload them). Other funny signs were "posted" by the Pandas reminding me to "be quiet because we hate too much noise." Walking around the different Panda habitats, Janet and I quickly saw 6 Giant Pandas, enough to double the number of Pandas that we had seen up to that point (having also seen 6 in the U.S. so far).

A little later, I heard a chorus of "ooohs" and "aaahs" and rounded the bend in the path to see the "Panda Kindergarten" which had 6 or 7 young cubs climbing around and wrestling with each other. The yard might easily be the cutest acre on Earth!

Adjacent to the kindergarten is the Panda nursery where we were able to see (but not take pictures of) two newborn cubs in incubators.

Following a short Panda Movie and a few other Panda yards, we probably saw 20-25 Giant Pandas and also a number of Red Pandas as well.

It all made for a very fun and Panda-filled morning! I think both Janet and I were excited to finally see Pandas after being in China for a month and a half and are already planning a trip back before we leave Chengdu.

If you ever in Chengdu, the Giant Panda Breeding Center is a must see!