Well, this adventure is quickly becoming an adventure about the toilets!!

More about that in a later report...
Day 5 of the Adventure
We met in the morning at 8:30 for our bus ride to the Chengdu Panda Research Base. I think a lot of us, especially the kids (and me!) were looking forward to this the most. On the way to the Pandas (today was known as Panda-Monium), Bobby told us about Chengdu's famous spicy ladies and their henpecked husbands.
It took about an hour or so to reach the Pandas. Traffic was so-so as the first working day after the tomb sweeping holiday. Chengdu is a mass of bicycles, electric bicycles and scooters. Pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcycles, and cars all compete for the same real estate. It was scary watching them drive but they all seem to know what they're doing and they certainly have fast reflexes!
Back to the Pandas. Our first activity was getting photos taken in front of a panda statue. And then we realized ... we're taking photos of statues when the real things are INSIDE the park!!! Next we were ushered into a room where one of the conservation biologists gave us a presentation on the pandas. Everybody listened intently, even the kids in the group. Finally, the biologist led us to the first panda enclosure where we glimpsed a panda with his back to us, munching contently on bamboo. You always knew where a panda was ... a crowd was usually around it.
We moved from enclosure to enclosure and pandas were plentiful! Then ... it was time for the optional event that is not an ABD event. The night before we were told that for 1300 RMB, we could get our photo taken holding a baby panda. The money goes right back into the conservation of the animals and the animals seem to enjoy it .... they're given treats so they just eat and eat and eat. That's what pandas love! We get a t-shirt, dvd, and certificate along with holding the panda. When we're told about it, the guides make sure there are no little ones nearby in case the parents don't want to shell out the money. They're very aware that this is expensive and they don't want the kids bugging mom and dad. LOL
Anyway, as we were looking at a panda mom and her baby, Bobby told Jennae and Daisy that we could do the Panda Experience now. Those of us who opted to do it were taken to a very crowded room where we paid our money, were given our "gifts" and then told to put little blue plastic bootie coverings on our shoes. We then waited to be taken in for gowning and gloving and then the pandas. My brother and I got separated from the group. The guy ushered the rest of the group in and then wouldn't let us in with them. Note... we're Chinese and look like everybody else I guess. Bobby came along and told the people, rather forcefully, to let us in.

Yay for Bobby! We met up with the rest of our group and put on the gowns and gloves (to protect the pandas from us). One by one, we sat down and a baby panda was placed into our hands and an apple slice was given to the panda. The smaller kids had problems holding the panda (it was bigger than them!) so the panda just sat next to them. When it was my turn, the dream and one of the reasons I wanted to go on this tour, was fulfilled. I never thought I would ever hold a panda bear in my arms. This was so AMAZING!!!! We all left the Panda Experience chattering away about what we just did and we all started looking at our photos right away too.

They have staff who take photos with your cameras and they took a LOT of photos so that at least one if not all of them turned out.
After that, it was a blur ... we watched more pandas, a group of 5 pandas eating, red pandas (they are sooooo cute) and then it was time to shop in the gift shop. If you're a stamp collector or want a unique and cheap souvenir, you can buy a post card, a stamp and have it stamped by the post office on site. It's a special postal cancellation unique to the park. I bought a t-shirt of a panda doing all the moves in tai-chi. We then discovered another gift shop with more artsy stuff and I ended up buying a tiny black laquer screen with the most amazing artwork on both sides. Only 400 RMB or about $60.
We drove back to the hotel for lunch. A huge international buffet is provided by the hotel's Cafe Z. The most amazing desserts...holy cow. I was in a chocolate coma. The rest of the food ... well, I'm finding a hard time eating anything because of how tired I am and how much food they're throwing at us. After lunch, we were told to meet in the lobby so we could go to one of the hotel function rooms for our Kung Fu demonstration. This was fun and ... well, painful for me.

ABD provided us with two Kung Fu masters (at 21 years of age!!) I volunteered with the kids in the group to do the stick fighting. Ok, limber young bodies and my stiff and old one just do not mix. As Bobby yelled out that a special prize would be availabe for the best stick fighter, I wondered out loud if it was a chiropracter. I did not volunteer for the next demo ... on kung fu fighting as a tiger. The kids and some of the adults had fun doing that ... especially the yelling part. We then got photos taken with the masters.
Free time was next but my brother and I spent our time packing because ... get this ... the next morning, our bags had to be out in the hallway at 5:15 am and we had to be in the lobby by 6:30 am. And since we were going to the opera at night, the only time we had to pack was during the free time. I know that some others walked outside to the river and looked around the area. There's also a Starbucks very close by.
Dinner was in the Cafe Z again. It was ... the same food as lunch but honestly, how could any of us eat? We had just eaten a couple of hours earlier!!! We then met at the bus to be driven to the opera at the teahouse. We were told that for 50 RMB we could get a massage or an ear massage. Ear massage? Some guy comes along and cleans the wax out of your ear ... and then rings a bell.... all while you watch the opera. Mmmm... ok.
We were allowed to take photos of the performers putting on their makeup. Our seats had little tables in front of them with tea cups and peanuts. A server came along and filled the tea cups up with a really long spouted pot. Some of our group got massages while sitting in their chairs. The show then started. To me, it resembled vaudeville ... a series of different acts. My favourite were the puppeteer, the shadow guy and the closing act, the most amazing face changing opera.
We got back to the hotel around 10 or 10:30. We had a very early start in the morning ... our flight to Xian.
Photos to follow ... eventually. (I typed this on my brother's laptop since it's faster than typing on my iPad....I was concerned that my carryon would be over the limited 5 kg of the domestic flights that I didn't bring my keyboard ... well, they don't weigh our carry on. They don't ever really see us because the guides check us in with the airline.)