Stories of the Middle Kingdom

Guess what I did today?

No really, go ahead, guess.

You got it, I went to a panda habitat!

I saw a panda on a trip to Guangzhou, China in 1989, and never again until today. In 1989, the panda sat in its own filth in a pathetic dark zoo. But the pandas I saw today seem to have life good.

Look at the panda above. He is staring at me! He froze like that for a full minute or two before resuming his breakfast. I was laughing out loud.

They are so cute. They have actions resembling those of my dog Mimi, except their posture is worse. One difference between pandas and dogs is that pandas have to put the food in their hands and then put it to their mouths. Mimi can't do that. (But hey, Mimi can move a lot faster than these pandas, and is clearly smarter than a panda.) One similarity is that both Mimi and the pandas charmingly smack their food when they eat.

Their habitat is beautiful! It was like a humongous bamboo rainforest.

This guy/gal/whatever decided he/she wanted breakfast in bed. First he (let's go with "he," shall we?) was sitting down to eat, but then he grabbed some branches of bamboo (put out by the caretakers), rolled over on his back, and started stuffing his mouth with bamboo leaves. They are so cute, everyone was laughing and smiling at the adorable pandas.

The entry fee to the park is equivalent to US$9 per person, which means a lot of locals couldn't afford to go.