Panda Mania

All week we’ve anticipated seeing the pandas and today was the day.  I lost count of how many times “so cute” was used to describe the bears. After pandas it was a trip downtown for lunch and a wander, before heading to Jinsha, an archaeological site discovered accidentally a few years ago when a construction crew was preparing a building site.  This is the location of a 3000+ year old civilization.  The big find, uncovered along with lots of pottery, bronze, and skeletons (human and otherwise,) was a small, paper thin disc of gold with the shape of the Sun surrounded by four birds.  The disc has become the symbol for Chengdu, and can be seen all over town.  At Jinsha, we also experienced a 4D movie, complete with wind and rain, snakes crawling up our legs, and arrows to our backs.  You just didn’t know what was going to happen next.  The day ended with our formal farewell dinner with our hosts, before the kids headed off for the weekend.  They were all making plans as we left, and the next time we’ll see each other will be Monday at the airport.  Where has the time gone?  We may not post tomorrow, depending on time and what our hosts have planned for Martha and me, though we’ll likely do one final post Sunday evening.  Here are some images from the day.

Three of a Kind

Julia and the Pandas

Star Attraction

Chase and Panda

Shooting Pandas

Boys and Bear

Look Behind You

More Bears

Emma and Panda

Brooke Gets the Shot

Schoolkids Short and Tall

A Typical Meal

Green Tea Ice Cream

Together at JInsha

Diggin’ Jinsha Site

3000 Year Old Skeleton

Sun and Immortal Birds

Ready for the 4D Movie

Year of the Snake

With Our Hosts

Amanda, Ali, Emma, and Ani

Boys Will Be Boys

Our Gracious Hosts

Tom Whittington