Day 381: Bear-cat / Cat-bear

Beijing, China

Last full day in China! I had yet to see a giant panda. Chengdu is supposedly the best place to see them since there’s a panda sanctuary.

It wouldn’t be possible for me to visit Chengdu on this trip. China is just too vast. I decided to just settle with going to Beijing Zoo.

Interesting fact that I learnt at the zoo regarding pandas: in Chinese they’re called 熊貓 “Xiongmao” meaning “Bear-cat.” This is actually a mistake but it’s so commonly used it’s now accepted as an official term. Originally, pandas are intended to be named 貓熊 “Maoxiong” meaning “Cat-bear” due to their cat-like face. But back in the days, the Chinese were still used to reading from right to left. Hence the mistake.

Photos of some of the animals: