Continued appropriation of their bamboo woods habitat has led to designation of them as an endangered species. Captive breeding has reasonable success, but there is not enough habitat to warrant reintroduction to the wild. China’s increasing population leaves little hope of that changing.

We recently rode our bicycle from Chengdu across the SW China mountains (Himalayas and Tibetan plateau). We began in Chengdu and visited the Giant Panda Breeding Center. Lucky, our stuffed panda, made the visit with and was not sure what to think of the really really big (to him) pandas. We did not see any pandas as we climbed through the life zones of the mountains. Though we certainly saw enough bamboo, it was interspersed with villages, farms and other human uses of the land.

Some Photos from the Giant Panda Breeding Center in Chengdu:

Lucky at the Giant Panda Breeding Center, Chengdu, China

Giant panda doing what pandas do best, eat.

Breakfast

Focused on food

This panda found a stash of bamboo, and a good place to watch tourists

A young panda looking for trouble

Panda Cubs Like Climbing

The Chinese love their pandas!

Lucky from Angkor Wat

We took Zippy to  ride yesterday to some place said Angkor Wat. Claire told it was a  important place. It is made of rocks people carved and piled up to make temples to a bunch of gods.

They have scary demons for gods to fight, or something. There is big snakes, elephants, and too, a crocodile carved into walls, and other stuff too.

There are whole armies fighting and different of their big important gods, including Buddha. I’m can’t know how they remember all these gods, but they must have been important for them to do hard work.

Oh, there are 1876 dancing nymphs carved there too, and Bob took a lot of pictures of them.

We went to several other temples that were just as interesting. Claire says we’re going to more today and tomorrow. I’m getting tired, and Bob wants a nap, but Claire says we’ll only be here once, so we gotta keep up to go.

Zippy and me liked the ride back best. It being dark and we no lights. Bob and Claire pedaled fast. We passed bicycles and tuk tuks and even cars. Then me and Bob talked to a little girl selling postcards while Claire got food.

Bob says they’ll put up some more pictures when he finds something called bandwidth. I don’t know what is, but he always grouches about it.

I having fun!

bye,

Lucky

Lucky takes a think break on a mountain wildflower pillow

I had another of those funny think things. “Respect yourself and others will respect you.” I asked Claire what that word respect means. She took a long time with her thinks before she said something. “Respect means you think well of someone, and that you trust what they say is what they will do.”  That sounds good. I thinked there might be more.  She heard my think, “Respect takes a long time to happen, she said. ” My head hurt, but I wanted to hear more. “To respect yourself, means to be honest so you know you are a good person, or uh, panda.” I had a think that I want to be a good panda. “If you act right, so you can respect yourself, then other people, and pandas, will see that and respect you.”  That was a long think, and I’ll think on it more. I like this think.

I think these thinks are coming from someone else. I’m not that smart by myself. It’s probably not a panda. We just think about bamboo. I wonder if it is a China person? Does anybody know who thinked these thinks first?

Cooking Spelt and Onions in Claire's Solar Cooker

Claire adding spices and vegetables to the spelt and onions. I'm getting hot!

Adding two small portions of salmon for the final few minutes

General solar cooker dinner; not exactly a recipe.

One cup spelt

One onion, diced

2 1/2 cups salted water

8 oz mixed frozen vegetables, thawed

two portions of salmon, or other fish

garlic powder

mixed spices, your choice

Set up the solar cooker (Claire made hers from a windshield shade and Velcro) in a funnel shape in full sun (duh) and out of the wind if possible. Put spelt, water and salt in baking dish, place inside a baking bag and close tight with twist tie; set in solar cooker. Check spelt after a couple of hours (bad choice, other whole grains cook much quicker); when done, add vegetables and spices. Adjust liquid with chicken broth or water, cook until vegetables are getting tender. Add salmon and cook until opaque.

Amazingly there was a noticeable drop-off in solar power late afternoon, when the hottest ambient temperatures occur; the sun is already beginning to weaken.

This is not exactly high cuisine; it was our first meal and we wanted to keep it simple. As it, it would be a child friendly project. The next time we will use a quicker cooking grain (still whole) use fresh vegetables, fresh garlic and add some olive oil.

Thank you Lucky, for sharing your blog with us, and watching the cooker all afternoon.

Lucky's First Thoughts

I must have bumped my head pretty hard when ended up in the middle of the road, before Bob and Claire rescued me.  My head has been feeling funny, not hurting, just funny. Well, after that last fast bicycle ride, the words up above just popped into my fluff filled head.

I told Bob, and his face went white. He said it was scary that a stuffed panda was doing something he called, thinking.

After little bit, he said he had an idea what the words meant: That a person (or panda?) should really do stuff, rather than hear about it or see it. He said it is the reason they travel, and hike and bicycle, instead of watch other people do stuff on television. I think I remember such a thing called a television from my other life. The people were always sitting quietly in front of it They might have been doing this thinking thing, but I couldn’t tell.

I think I like moving better than sitting, but I like doing this new thing they call thinking too.

Does anyone know where my thought came from?

Lucky on Turtle's dashboard

My name is Lucky. At least that is what my new human caretakers call me. Bob says I need to have my very own blog. I don’t know what a blog is, but I have one, and this is it. He says I should just live my new life as it unfolds, and tell all of you about it. He says my life with he and Claire will be adventurous. I’m not sure what that means. Bob will take pictures of me, and Claire seems to be pretty set on keeping me clean.

I think I know why they named me Lucky. I woke up in the middle of  a very busy, highway on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. There were big trucks and motorhomes and fast cars flying inches on either side of me. I knew I was going to be squished flat at any moment, but I couldn’t get away. You see I am a stuffed animal, and we can’t move very far without the help of a human, usually little ones. It must have been a little human that dropped me on the road, but I don’t remember.  

Anyway, Claire saw me there as she and Bob sped past in Turtle, that’s their motorhome’s name, and she announced that a bear rescue was required. Bob and Turtle reponded with a fast  U-Turn and the next thing I knew, I was looking out Turtle’s windshield and feeling safe.

Where they found me

Last night we parked among the big trucks in a truckstop. Since there wasn’t time for Bob to get a picture as he was scooping me up off the road, he wanted to do a sort of fake picture and he took me out to the highway while Claire watched from Turtle.

Just as he finished and was standing in the middle of the road with me in one hand and a camera in the other,  a rescue vehicle appeared with lots of flashing lights. “Are you alright, sir?” said the man with a serious look.

“You’re not going to believe this,” said Bob. “But, I was just taking a picture of my bear on the center line.”

“I see,” said the man, who now had a  funny little smile on his face. “You’d better be careful, there are a lot of crazy people out here.”

“Yes, sir. Thank you,” said Bob as he scurried off to Turtle.

Claire Being Supportive

This is what Claire looked like when we got back. It took her a long time to recover.

The Bath

This picture is me getting my bath.

After my bath, I learned from Claire, who could tell from the tag on my butt, that I was from China. Then Claire and Bob looked at each other and both said at the same time, “We’re going to China!” I don’t know exactly what that means, but I think it might mean that adventure thing Bob mentioned.

I’ll tell you more when I know more.

 Oh, Bob says to tell your friends about my blog. There might even be videos later, whatever that is. He says I will have such an interesting life that my blog should go viral. I don’t know if that sounds good or not…

zai jian, (that means good-bye in Chinese)

Lucky