Qingming 2.0: Complete Panda-monium

Before and during my time in China, I made a list of all the things I wanted to do on this side of the world before moving to our next destination.  One of the items on my list was to hug a panda.  Chris and I did a little research, and heard through the grapevine that one could hold a panda at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding for a donation. So for this year’s Qingming holiday, we planned a trip to Chengdu, China so I could hug a baby panda. 

When we first arrived at the panda sanctuary around 8:15, there were very few people around the entrance much to my surprise.  I thought the park was closed until we saw other tourists enter.  

After Chris purchased entry tickets (58 RMB/ 10 USD), we jumped on a tram inside the park and headed to the panda nursery so I could get my snuggles.  Fortunately, our hotel had made a reservation for our meet and greet so we wouldn’t have to wait in a long line to make a reservation.   (Bookings go quickly, so I highly recommend anyone interested in the experience book tickets in advance.)

When we arrived at the nursery, we learned that we wouldn’t be able to hold the pandas for another hour, so we spent some time checking out some of the sanctuary’s other residents.

There are currently 76 Red Pandas living in the sanctuary.

Red Pandas have a reputation of being a wee bit naughty and aggressive.  These two bears were tumbling all over.

When I first saw these pandas, I thought they were foxes. 

Many Red Pandas love snoozing in the trees.  I don’t know how that can be comfortable.

After our time with the Red Pandas, we headed back to the nursery to make our obligatory monetary donation and prepared for the main event.

We learned that we would need to wait 45 more minutes, so we checked out the baby Giant Pandas in the nursery.

Most panda babies in the sanctuary are born between August and October, so the cubs in the nursery were between seven and nine months old.  At this stage many cubs spend their days learning to climb and tumbling around their playground.

This little guy loved hanging on…and out!

Many of the cubs had spectators cheering them on as they scaled the trees.

This log smelled fun!

This little guy called down to his friend to join him in the tree.

He’s almost there.

Okay, now that we're up here what do we do?

The mother pandas also have their own pens in the nursery.

This momma cracked me up.  She buried herself in bamboo and enjoyed her breakfast.  Adult pandas eat around 50 kg (100 lbs.) of bamboo daily.

After milling around the pens for 40 minutes, it was time for the main event!  The cuddle experience started after a brief talk about the baby Pandas’ first few months on Earth.  We then suited up and learned how the event would transpire.

Chris geared up for cuddle time.  Humans had to wear plastic gloves and surgical gowns to prevent infecting pandas with human diseases. 

I was so excited to hold eight month old San!  To keep San happy, her handlers kept feeding her honey dipped bamboo sticks. 

San was 15kg (30 lbs.)  of furry panda!  Her fur reminded me of soft wire.  I was very careful not to touch her ears.  (Pandas don’t like ear rubs.)

When cuddle time was almost over, Chris sat down and we snapped a family portrait.  I wished I could take San with us, but I thought the dogs would have had an issue with another creature in our house.

Chris also had a nice snuggle with San.

In return for our donation to the Panda Sanctuary, we got a cool swag bag! 

After cuddle time, we hiked around the remainder of the research base to check out some of the other Giant Pandas.

This panda, Yun Zi, was born in San Diego and then shipped to the base.  China has a panda leasing program that loans pandas to foreign zoos.  As part of that agreement, all cubs that are born outside of China must be returned.  Since Yun Zi learned English as his first language, he had to learn Chinese commands after he arrived in Chengdu.  The guides claim that Yun Zi is a bilingual panda!!  For more on Yun Zi’s story, click here.

Since pandas only absorb about 20% of the nutrients they need from bamboo, their diets are supplemented with panda cookies that contain corn, oats, and soybeans.  This big guy loved playing with his cookie

Many of the pandas loved hanging upside down.

This guy had a great time while hanging in there! 

After all of the excitement of the morning, I felt like this guy.  However, we had other sites to see after the park.  So we boarded our tram and headed back to the front of the park so we could continue exploring Chengdu.

Word to the wise: if you plan on touring the base, start early.  When we left the park around 1:30, the line to enter was farther than the eye could see. 

A visit to the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding was definitely worth the trip!  I highly recommend it for panda lovers of all ages. 

For more information on the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding, check out their home page.  Happy snuggles!

Superstition

I am not a superstitious person by nature, however if I see a ladder I will walk around it just to be safe.  I steer clear of black cats because I am deathly allergic, and I don’t open umbrellas inside my apartment because I prefer to let them dry outside my door.  During my time in China, I am quickly learning how superstitious many folks can be.

Last Wednesday, I modeled how to complete a writing assignment to my fifth graders with the help of a document camera.  My script was not projecting well, so I grabbed a red pen and started to write my name at the top of the paper.  About 10 of my students screamed,

“AAAAAUUUUUUGGGHHHH!!!  MS. ANNE!!!  STOP!!!!!”   Completely startled, I sputtered,

“What?  What’s wrong?”

“MS. ANNE YOU ARE GOING TO DIE!!!!” they screamed.

“How in the world am I going to die?” I asked.

“YOU ARE WRITING YOUR NAME IN RED PEN!!!  IF YOU WRITE YOUR NAME IN RED YOU WILL DIE!!!”   

After 3 seconds of insanity, my students calmed down, handed me a black pen, and explained this superstition to me.   If someone writes their name in red in China, they will soon die.  Even more, if you write someone else’s name in red, you want them dead.  We then continued the lesson as usual.

On my cab ride home, I wondered how many times I had either unintentionally offended or hexed others or myself by breaking Chinese superstitions.  When I got home, I opened my laptop, researched superstitions, and verified these tales with my local people.  According to many Chinese old wives tales, I am looking for a death wish.  Here are some of the superstitions that say why:

1) Don’t sign your name or write any name in red ink.  If you do, the person whose name you write will die.

This may be because prisoners had to sign their names in red before they were executed.  It may also be because people wrote the names of the deceased on plaques or stones in red in the middle of towns. I can’t count the number of times I have done this.  Oh, and don’t put a square around your name either.  That means you are dead.

I never knew such a simple act would make so many people scream. 

2) Don’t clip your finger or toenails at night.

Ghosts will visit you.  That would explain the long pinkie nails on many a cab driver.

3) Beating someone with a broom will bring bad luck for years.

I wonder if this bad luck will stem from retaliation or prison.

4) Four is an extremely unlucky number.

If mispronounced it sounds like death.   

Like many others like it, my apartment building doesn't have a 4th, 14th or 24th floor.  It was constructed for Western tenants so there is no 13th floor too! 

5) Never put chopsticks vertically in your rice bowl.

Apparently vertical chopsticks in rice look like incense and disrespect the Chinese departed.

I can't tell you the number of times I have done this…especially in the States.  I really am not trying to disrespect the dead.  I just need a place to rest my chopsticks.

6) Don’t whistle at night.

Apparently They Might Be Giants had it wrong.  Evil spirits will find you and follow you into your home.

7)  Don’t have any mirrors facing your bed. 

Apparently the mirrors can steal your soul when you are sleeping.  Maybe our landlords have it out for us.

After showing this picture to my Chinese teacher, she said the mirror would not capture my soul because it isn't at the foot of our bed.  That's a relief!

8) Don’t ever give someone a clock as a gift.

The words for clock and funeral sound alike.  Watches are okay, but clocks mean you want to off someone.

I would love this clock, however my Chinese friends would think I was trying to kill them if I gave this as a gift.

9) When visiting someone in the hospital, don’t bring any red roses or red apples.

Some folks believe there is enough red with all the blood in the hospital.  If you bring someone red roses or apples, you are wishing them death.

While many Bachelors/ Bachelorettes want these roses, Chinese patients do not!

10) If a dog howls at night it means death is on the way.

I really hope this little girl isn’t trying to kill me.

I'm not trying to kill you.  I just want a treat.

The good news is one CAN undo this bad luck.  All you have to do is step in dog poop. 

I think I will take my chances and avoid piles. 

Good luck, dear readers!

Exploring Through The Lens

Shanghai is a massive, beautiful city that is jam packed with incredible photo opportunities.  One of my favorite ways to spend a sunny weekend is to grab my camera, explore, and shoot.  Knowing this, Chris gave us a Photo Walks: Stroll & See Photo Tour from Shanghai-Flaneur for Valentine’s Day. 

Our tour began in a small coffee shop near the Hongkou Football stadium.  The first half hour of the tour was a lecture on how to use different camera settings.  Our instructor, Yolanda, was quite knowledgeable about how to shoot with different settings.    Her talk was a great refresher of the course I took last semester.

Yolanda did a great job teaching us about camera settings.

After our mini lecture, it was time to take off and shoot.  Our first destination was a park next to the stadium.  We had a great time snapping the hustle and bustle of Saturday at the park!

Our tour started with shots of the bird cages in the park.

Many days, folks bring their song birds outside, and hang their cages on wires in parks.  The tweeting birds bring great joy to my walks.

We then walked to find a chorus of citizens singing the anthems of their people.  

The singers were accompanied by accordions, violins, and many other instruments.

The entire spectacle bordered on being magical.  These sing alongs happen quite frequently.  I highly recommend checking one out on a weekend morning. 

I then took a moment to capture the beauty of some nearby pink blossoms.

Folks were dancing all over the park.  Some people were ballroom dancing.

Other folks took the line dancing route. 

One day, I will learn their dances and join in the fun.

After the park, we headed for the streets of Hongkou to capture a bit of everyday life.

A tiny fruit market was one of our first stops.

These stands can be found in many Shanghainese alleys.

Many residents stepped out of their homes to watch foreigners take pictures. 

We then walked by some small restaurants.  Customers picked out ingredients to add to this large soup pot.  This soup is a classic winter street food.

We then took a break from shooting to have an impromptu lesson on fun with white balance.

We then ducked into a residential alley to shoot the daily happenings.

These two cuties were doing their homework outside.

I made sure to keep my eyes open when walking down the alleys.  People had a tendency to whiz by on their scooters.

It was such a privilege to capture everyday life.

If you are looking to see and shoot everyday Shanghai, I highly recommend this tour. The company provides tours in English, German, and Mandarin.  I am looking forward to taking a couple more tours with them!  For information about Flaneur, visit their website: 

http://www.shanghai-flaneur.com/index.php?id=6&L=1.

P.S.  I was not compensated by the company for this post.  The tours are that good.  Happy snapping!