Pandas At Play

In March of 2001, [Maris] and I had our first visit with the newest residents of the National Zoo in Washington, DC - Giant Pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian. Like the hundreds of other visitors there that day, we were immediately smitten. We had grown up with the Zoo's original pair, Ling Ling and Hsing Hsing and although we loved them, too, they just weren't fun to watch. Mei and Tian like each other, and arrived at a younger, more energetic age. Here are our first few shots. Below, Mei Xiang amuses herself...

"I am a panda. Love me!"

Tian Tian's favorite game is "chase, tackle and bite Mei until she squeaks."

Mei's favorite game is "wait for Tian to chase, tackle and bite me until I squeak."

Pushing each other is fun, too - apparently.

Ah, a 5-gallon water jug filled with apple slices. Tian is not nearly as coordinated, nor as patient, as Mei, so this "enrichment" item is all hers to inspect...

... and bite...

... and shake. She did, eventually, get every last bit of apple out of there, too.

One last head-butt, and we'll say so long for now, fluffy little ones.

So much more to come. Thanks for visiting. Seeya!