This was yet another exciting morning, as we set off for the first of two panda visits over 2 days. We headed about an hour and a half out of Chengdu towards the Dujiangyan Panda Base that is set in a vast bamboo forest and covers around 126 acres. Within the area there is also a rescue and quarantine area and a disease control, prevention and research area for the pandas. The whole area is beautiful and there was an incredible variety of bamboo species.
The giant panda is native to Southwestern China and is considered a national treasure. These cuddly creatures are primarily found in Sichuan, Shaanxi, and Gansu provinces. The Chinese government have been working together with various conservation organisations to increase panda numbers and protect their important habitat. A panda can eat up to 12.5 kg of bamboo a day, so the correct environment is imperative to ensure their health and fitness. I hadn’t realised before quite how important the panda is to China, and that most pandas in zoos around the world have now been reclaimed by China – China charges Zoos $1,000,000 a year to loan just one panda!
We all loved this trip, as we managed to see a few pandas – the red pandas were harder to see. We noticed that as the heat of the day increased that the pandas who were up and about and fully visible to us retired to the shade of the trees and kept out of view – who could blame them when the mercury was hitting about 35 degrees most days! It is definitely worth coming here early in the day to get the most out of panda sightings. It is quieter up here since it is quite far out and therefore harder for locals to organise a visit here.
After a wonderful morning of cooing over pandas, it was eventually time to tear ourselves away and go for some lunch. Our afternoon was quite different to the morning and was spent exploring the many wonders of the Chengdu markets. This is a pretty area with narrow streets, lanterns everywhere, and stalls selling everything from leather goods to tea. The aromas change as you walk along, from Chinese food of all sorts to the smell of leather and pottery. Beautiful Chinese buildings and a large water area full of fish added more interest and colour to the market area. It was extremely hot walking round the markets during the afternoon, as it was probably the hottest part of the day. This was the day I decided to get a drink from one of the cafes and after many of the drinks seemingly being off the menu I settled for a hot lemon tea that appeared in the form of a cup full of ice with a bit of slightly pale-yellow liquid – conversing with the locals obviously wasn’t my strong point.
In the evening, we went to a local restaurant to sample the Chengdu cuisine which is quite spicy unlike much of the other Chinese cuisine we had sampled up to this point. I’m not too keen on anything too spicy, but I’ll give things a try. I was doing quite well, but then I accidentally ate a large piece of chilli! Alison was telling me this day about some of the Chinese snacks that they enjoy in Chengdu that consisted of pig ears and rabbit heads on sticks – she said they were delicious! I said that I would be sticking with panda ice creams.
After the meal, it was off to experience our final show of the holiday: The Sichuan Opera. This was an enjoyable evening of singing, acrobatics, face-changing techniques, and storytelling. The costumes and stage sets were bright and colourful – the perfect way to wind down and end the day.
