We are about to leave Chengdu and fly to Chiang Mai. Really enjoyed this time in Chengdu we were so rushed last time we just saw the Pandas and the Changing Faces show. The pandas are as adorable as ever and now there are even more of them. The reproduction has been going very well at the Giant Panda Research Center. We spend most of the morning at this lovely facility. As we were about to leave there were literally hundreds of little kids in school uniforms and guided by the military. Probably about 6 - 8 years old. At this stage of their education they spend time with the military and the military teaches them discipline, standing still for periods of time things of this nature. Did not look like the military guides were having much success with this discipline. They were all so excited shouting HELLO and giggling it was a lot of fun. Had a little snack here for lunch and there are some nice Chinese restaurants as well. Ken will post some pictures..

After the Pandas we visited some of the traditional tourist places and we really enjoyed Jinli Street that is a reproduction of an old Chinese street. This is for tourists of course. Great buildings and a very busy bustling place. Lots of local foods, our guide had a pig ears sandwich not quite my normal lunchtime snack. Only a few westerners but tons of Chinese tourists. It was a lot of fun.. Only western fare was their version of cross between KFC and McDonalds.

Then our guide took us a bit off the beaten path and we found Peoples Park. This place was a hoot and VERY loud. Beautiful park complete with a lake and little bridges with small boats taking families for rides on the lake. What made it special was all these people that took turns at performing. Most of these were older and often dressed in colorful costumes, men waving Chinese flags and singing. We saw a few punk rock type kids singing but not much of an audience. Little stages with loud jam box music around every corner. No westerners in sight and so many people saw us and offered their seat for us to watch the performers. It was quite touching. What really tickled me was a huge open area and the Chinese were doing their version of "the freeze" a country and western line dance. Just a few extra steps but that surprised me Ken and I met doing that line dance. They retire so early here and they need to keep busy and I guess this is one way of doing that.

We went to the Changing Faces show again. It is amazing how they do that it really is changing the color of their mask in an instant. Prior to the show we wandered park and found an open area where the older people were dancing. It is so delightful to see the couples out there together.

Great visit, now we head off to Thailand.