Of course a priority for my visits to Chengdu Panda Base was to see Yuan Meng 圆梦 again! I first saw him back in his birth country of France when I visited ZooParc de Beauval in 2022, and then I was lucky to see him again back in September 2023 here at the Chengdu Panda Base. At that time he had only recently gone on show to the public and was still a little apprehensive about his new surroundings, but I managed to see him and was so pleased. He’s certainly grown in confidence since then! On both mornings Yuan Meng was just about my first stop (after an hour on the first morning to stop to see Hua Hua) – on the first morning it was a bit later and he was right at the back of the yard and heading inside as the temperatures were rising. I got there earlier on the second morning and the timing was perfect as he was just coming outside as I got there. He had some enrichment and worked on getting some apple pieces out, which he spent a long time at, and then he settled down with a pile of bamboo. He was very popular, with many tour groups stopping at him for pictures. After he had finished his bamboo he climbed up onto a platform at the back of the yard for a sleep. A little while later the keeper was trying to call him inside because of the temperature and he was completely ignoring her! So happy to see him again for a third time, and hopefully I will get to see him again next time^
Next up from the Chengdu Panda Base, visiting the Sunshine Nursery House. For me, this house has changed a lot from my last visit to this one, and especially from pre-2020 to now. This used to be almost strictly cubs and was always where I could see cubs playing. This time it was a lot of adult pandas, and I didn’t see any of them with cubs, but maybe this was just due to the timing of my visit. I did still see some 2023-born cubs in the inside spaces, and luckily I saw these on both days I was there. The one-way system is also still in place from my last visit, but this time there at least was only a short line to get in the inside viewing. But this house definitely isn’t quite as exciting for me as it used to be. The shop does have some pretty good souvenirs though, and the food stall here had a different selection of foods to last time (lots of panda shapes of course^).
After several days based in Dujiangyan and having an afternoon in Chengdu city centre – it was finally time to head out to the Chengdu Panda Base! I had 2 days planned to visit and I really made the most of all the time available, arriving at opening (7:30AM) and not leaving until between 5 and 6PM on both days. Having visited back in September 2023 and experienced a part of the new section of the base, I knew I needed to go in with a bit of a game-plan to see it all.
After a wonderful and panda-packed week in Dujiangyan, it was finally time to head into Chengdu itself! I took a lunchtime train from Dujiangyan, meaning I could have a nice lie-in and head for a leisurely breakfast, it was nice not to have to fight the coach-loads of other tourists to get a spot. I stocked up on a couple of snacks and drinks at the 7/11 down the street from the hotel then went to pack up. My friend very kindly gave me a lift to the station, which was super nice especially as there was no elevator/escalator so it was down a set of stairs and I wouldn’t have managed it with 2 suitcases! There is just the one line through the Liduiyuan station in Dujiangyan, so super easy to travel through, you’ll definitely get on the right train. It was quite busy, but my friend made sure I got in the right line for showing my passport (vs. the Chinese travellers who can show their ID cards) and even got the guard to let me wait at the front of the boarding group because I had luggage with me. It was a little chaotic once they opened the gates to board the train, luckily my seat was in the first coach I came to and there was plenty of space for luggage, so it wasn’t as stressful as it could have been. The journey is super quick, less than 25 minutes and then you’re at the Xipu station in the outskirts of Chengdu. I was staying at the Crowne Plaza City Centreagain, and know there’s not a metro stop very close to this, so I opted to take a taxi – it was a bit tricky finding the taxi rank, this seemed to be at the opposite side of the station from where my platform was, so it was a bit of a walk along a narrow pavement to find it, but luckily there were plenty of taxis once I got there. I was a bit early for check-in, but this was no problem and they even upgraded me to a suite – which was such a treat! I took a break in the room for a bit and unpacked a little before heading out to see some of my favourite spots – mainly checking out the latest releases at the Panda Post stores and heading to the Kuanzhai Alley (Wide and Narrow alleys) because I wanted to see the Grandpa Panda souvenir store. It was a crazy sight when I got there, the most insane panda souvenir experience I’ve ever seen. It wasn’t as mad as this when I went in September 2023, so it seems to be a recent thing, and I look forward to seeing if it’s changed any when I travel next year too. I didn’t end up buying anything, lots of things were the same and nothing was super unique/individual that I wanted to get. I stopped for a late lunch in my new favourite fast-food place, Dicos, and enjoyed some aircon and an iced drink before heading to Chunxilu and the IFS mall to check out the panda climbing up the building, a must-do every trip for me^ I stopped in a few shops on the way and just enjoyed a leisurely evening walk eventually heading back to the hotel – I ended up just having some snacks while relaxing in the super comfy bed and getting an early night for my early alarm to head to the Chengdu Panda Base the next day.
