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Published: August 22nd 2011
I walked out of my room while the sky is still dark. I could not see clearly as the morning fog hinders my vision. Sleepily I went to the reception area of the hostel and waited for someone to pick me up for the prebooked Panda tour. A mini-van drove up and i was told that that was my ride. In the mini-van was a asian looking young boy who asked if i speak. English. I said i do and we chatted a little. He's Trung, Vietnamese by birth but has been residing in Australia. He wore a cute lil hat with ear warmers that was designed to look like a Panda. Yes, he was totally in the mood and getting hyped up for the Panda tour.
We arrived at the Chengdu Panda Research Centre after a short ride and met quite a few other tourists at the entrance. Entering the research centre, we were greeted by a lone Panda who was lumbering around lazily. We stood around staring amidst sounds of 'ooo' and 'ahhh's before we were ushered off to watch the feeding in another area. 4 Pandas on a wooden platform greeted us next. They sat on they
big furry butts and rolled to the side from time to time to grab a piece of bamboo to munch on. Yes, Pandas are darn lazy! But there was also a sense of serenity watching them and watch them we did! I have no idea how much time we spent just standing around staring obnoxiously at the 4 of them while they ate their breakfast. Oh and no, Pandas are not all white and black and fluffy. Their white fur is more of a dirty brown color probably from the lack of personal hygiene.
As we walked on deeper into the research centre, i asked one of the guides if it is possible to touch a Panda or take a picture with one. I was instantly told that i could.... but for a fee. Thinking that the so called 'fee' would be around the reasonable range of $10-$50, I inquired how much the fee was. I was told that the 'fee' would be given in a form of donation to the research centre. Thinking (again) that having it stated as a donation would mean the amount I choose to donate (if I was so inclined) would be up to
Munching 1
look at that cute tongueme, I persisted and asked if a $50 donation would be reasonable. I got my answer from his deep hearty laugh. When the guide finally calmed down, he told me that the minimum donation was $1000. I blinked, muttered a barely audible 'oh...' and went on walking.
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