"Treasures of Cruising the World" with Bill & Mary Ann: Report #56 Xian to Chengdu, China February 25, 2017 Saturday A little warmer as we head south Part #1 Of 2 85 Pictures

Up bright and early at an ungodly 3:30am, we checked out of the hotel rather quickly. Of course, no one else was up at that time in the morning. And it was a Saturday besides, and the commuters were gone for the weekend.

Lucy was right on time, and had arranged for us to get a bagged breakfast. It contained a banana, apple, and three breakfast rolls. Water was in the bottom. Gave us something to do as we headed towards the airport. As we expected, there was little traffic on the freeway.

Arrived at the airport by 6:30am. So this is where all the local people were today……traveling for the weekend. As you enter any airport in China, you are contained in a small area, then a guard will swipe your clothing and belongings with a cloth to detect anything unusual. Once cleared, you are allowed to line up at the correct airline counter.

Following Lucy, we wound our way around the slower ones to get in a shorter line. We were flying Hainan Airlines this morning, and ended up in an expedited line for late comers and handicapped. Lucy handed us our passports back, and said to pretend we did not know her. If we were questioned about why we were in this line, we were to claim we did not understand Chinese language. Yes, we certainly do not. No one asked, as we were obviously tourists. We think being American, you are treated with more respect than being Chinese. They tend to move about aggressively and quickly, and if you are in the way, they'll push past you. By the way, so far we have not had any ID numbers attached to our airline reservations. All the info is tied to our passports. Once scanned, they have all of the information they need.

The only luggage we checked was the one bag, which weighed 40 pounds according to a hand scale we bring with us. Must have passed, because it was tagged and away it went. At this point, we said our goodbyes to Lucy, who had been a wonderful guide. She spoke English quite well and she also spoke loudly…..we could hear her perfectly.

Going through the security check, we did not have to take anything out of our hand carrys. Only the jacket and scarf had to come off, nothing else. Computers stayed in the case, and the shoes could remain on. We were each wanded and patted down thoroughly.

There was a long walk to the gate, and we got there by 7am. Sitting for a few minutes, we realized people were lining up already. OK, we get it, as we joined the line too. But the plane was not here, but somewhere out on the tarmac. A bus was waiting outside for us after we had our tickets scanned at the door. The bus must have gone over a mile before it stopped to let us out at a portable stairway. Two flights of stairs led us to the connection to the plane.

Our seats were near the front, a window and aisle. Once again, there was no organized plan to fill the plane….you just came in and took your place. Seems to work better, instead of being loaded last, then finding no space left in the overhead bins for your small bags.

This flight was 1 hour and 40 minutes, not enough time to figure out the small ipad that each passenger had in their pouch. We had been given some nice earbuds, and we guessed they were for this device. Mine kept shutting off….. perhaps a weak battery. Bill never touched his, because he used the time to work on photos.

It was hard to stay awake, since we had been on the go since 3:30am with little breakfast. About halfway into the flight, the stewardesses passed out what they called a hamburger. Not exactly the kind we know, but a sticky white rice top, a pancake with veggies in it, then sandwiched with sweet purple potato-flavored rice. Also bottles of water were handed out. One of us tried the warmed rice snack, but it was rather bland-tasting. If nothing else, it was filling.

The landing at Chengdu was uneventful, touching down at 10am. We followed the crowd to the baggage area what seemed like miles away. At least these airports have free luggage trolleys to use. Need to mention a little hint at this point. Restrooms in China tend to be the hole in the ground. Few are western-style. However, if you locate a handicapped stall, more than likely, it will be western….the commode we are accustomed to. Another hint? Bring extra tissues with you in case there is no TP. In many restrooms, you take the TP before entering the stalls. Sometimes, there is none.

It was unbelievable how crowded this airport was with inter-China travelers. Few people resembled us….foreigners. Outside the terminal, we found Susan, our new guide for Chengdu. She led us to our ride with a young lady as the driver. Compared to the more aggressive driver we had in Xian, she was much more cautious. Although, she was not afraid of using her horn.

There was a change in plans for today, as we were told it would be too far to take us to the hotel. And besides, we could not check in before 1 or 2pm anyway. We had been led to think our belongings may have been stored at the hotel, but this was not going to happen. Even though Susan promised us that the driver would not leave or stuff unattended, we still did not like the idea. We had little choice but to lug some of the valuables with us to the panda facility.

On the way out of the city, we encountered the worst traffic ever. Perhaps there was an accident, but whatever the reason, we were delayed another hour. It did give Susan the time to bring us up-to-date on the Sichuan Province and its capital, Chengdu. Susan was much more subdued than Lucy, so we really had to listen hard to understand what she was saying.

Located in central China, this province is the most populous place of China. Over 100 million people live here. It is the most favorable for agriculture with warm summers and mild winters. The terraced rice plots can produced up to three crops a year. Because of surrounding mountains, greenhouse gases and pollutants are trapped in an inversion layer. This area can get acid rains that can actually ravage mountain forests.

Other products here are oranges, mandarins, grapefruit, veggies, oil, sugar cane, camphor, raw lacquer, wax, tea, and finally bamboo. Mulberry trees are grown for food for the silkworm industry. The western mountains are full of firs and deciduous trees, but it is more famous for their giant panda bears. And that is why we are primarily here…..the pandas.

We arrived at the Giant Panda Breeding Base before noon. It is located not far from the center of the city in the northern suburb of Chengdu. Built on Futou Hill in 1990 and opened to the public in 1995, it is the only place in the world to see so many pandas up close. It is not really a zoo, but a research facility to help preserve the species, which numbered only 1000 back in 2002. Also in 2002, there were only one dozen pandas there. Today there are over 70 of them….giant, lesser, and many youngsters. As well as various enclosures, this property has a nursery for the babies, outdoor play areas for them, and even a kitchen where "panda cakes or bread" are prepared. These special bamboo cakes are fed to the pandas on a long bamboo stick by their handlers. They can get them to stand and beg for them we were told.

There is a veterinary hospital, a discovery center, a museum, and a cinema. We did not have enough time to see it all. What we did see was the most fascinating animals from young ones to the older adults. Males can weigh well over 260 pounds, while the females run about 200 pounds. They are solitary animals, with the young staying with their moms until 18 months or so. The females come into season only three days out of the year, and are not always receptive to the males. Therefore, there is an in vitro process in place to create more pandas. If the babies are not cared for by the mothers, they are taken and hand-fed by the scientists. Only five young pandas have survived in the wild once released from here. The good news is that due to this facility, there are 1800 pandas in the wild now.

These animals live on bamboo….lots of it, since there is little nutrition in it. Basically, what goes in, comes out near the same….undigested. So they spend most of their time eating. Bamboo plantations grow it about 55 km away from here. It is brought daily by truck. Although this entire park complex is full of bamboo, it would not sustain the animals much more than three days.

Other animals here are red pandas, which are not pandas at all. They are related to raccoons, but much prettier than our North American version. They have a different diet of bugs, apples, small critters, and also panda cakes. Everyone gets their treats daily.

The hike through this park was basically uphill all the way…a combination of stairs and walkways. Since our time was limited, we had the option of taking the cute electric train back to the gate. Spending about 3 hours here was exhausting, but so worth it. Traffic going back to the hotel was not so bad.

We thought the Shangri-La hotels were wonderful, but we were not prepared for what we found at the St. Regis Hotel in Chengdu. Elegant and opulent is an understatement. Located right in the center of the city, this property is stunning the minute you walk into the lobby. Our room was even better. Everything was state-of-the-art and spacious. Fit for a king and queen.

It was great to spend some down time from touring, and work on photos (never-ending). Time was getting away from us, so we headed for a late lunch at their café. Turned out to be the only meal of the day. We order a western meal of hamburgers and fries. A plate of fresh fruit was served while we waited, which was not long, since we were among the only customers there this time of day. So far, these burgers were the most tasty of all. And filling.

Back in the room, we took the time to figure out everything that was run by computers and remote controls. We'll describe each room later, as nothing was typical here. We stayed up until 9am before we decided on splitting an apple for dinner. By 10am, we called it quits and fell asleep instantly.

Tomorrow, we will head for the mountains on an all day tour.

Bill & Mary Ann

XIAN

Xian Airport