This morning we docked in Chongqing in Sichuan province. It is a municipality like Washington DC and has a population of 33 million people. Chongqing is a very mountainous city with 2 rivers cutting it into several pieces. The climate is hot, hot , hot!!!! Today it was about 33 degrees with 85 % humidity. It is a subtropical climate that experiences monsoons. It is the hottest city in China with temperatures soaring to over 45 degrees in August. From 1937 to 1945 Chongqing was the wartime capital of China and was heavily bombed by the Japanese.
However this city is best known for its Pandas.
Even though there is an extensive Panda breeding program they are still endangered because they have a very low birth rate. However they have moved from an “endangered” species designation to a “ vulnerable” designation with an estimated number of 2000 to 3000. They do not seem too interested in reproducing. Most of the new cubs are the results of artificial insemination. Here are three 9 month old cubs. There is a set of twins.
They play like little kids and are very clumsy....just like toddlers learning how to walk.
Giant pandas are generally solitary, and each adult has a defined territory, and a female is not tolerant of other females in her range. Social encounters occur only during the brief breeding season in which pandas will gather. After mating, the male leaves the female alone to raise the cub.
In 1984 the Peoples Republic of China (PRC) began to offer pandas to other nations on 10-year loans, under terms including a fee of up to US$1,000,000 per year and a provision that any cubs born during the loan are the property of the PRC.
Just before we left Garry got photobombed by a Panda.
China is a country where most people live in apartments. However their government ensures that there are plenty of green spaces and parks for them to play and relax in…..and they make good use of them.
We also did Tai Chi but are not quite as graceful…..maybe if we had the silk pyjamas we would be better!
Chongqing is growing so quickly that they have to issue new maps every 3 months. However we did visit part of the old city which allowed us to rub elbows (literally) with the locals. Sichuan province is known for its spicy food so walking past some of the food stalls made our eyes and noses run from the hot chillies in the air. I am the one in the royal blue shirt.
The side streets had some interesting shops. Here a young woman is getting the calluses on her feet removed by sticking them into an aquarium of fish. I wonder if it tickles?
Garry was wearing his Toronto Pan Am shirt and suddenly a young man screamed the words “Raptors” and “Kyle Lowry”. He was a real basketball fan. He also knew about the Toronto Blue Jays……go figure! We had a nice chat. There are some things that are universal.
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