East Coast Adventure, Part 3B: National Zoo/Pandas

I love pandas. I can't explain it. I don't think it has to do with my heritage, because that's the wrong country. They're just incredibly adorable creatures and the fact that not every zoo has them is quite appealing. They just look so cuddly, especially when they're younger.

So when I made my plans for my East Coast Adventure, I knew I had to make plans to go see the pandas. My hosts weren't too keen on pandas, so I was planning on going with a friend/colleague who had moved out to the DC area. However, our trip did not work out as planned - an unforeseen mishap caused a detour in our plans - and I did not go. Therefore, the following day, I was quite determined to make a visit and see the pandas I so desperately wanted to see.

That determination made for a very interesting morning and I learned that persistence does pay off, even if it sucks getting there. Apparently, pandas are early risers. They'd already been up and were back asleep by the time I got there. There were two gals there who are apparently the BIGGEST fans of the baby panda, and they were just as determined as I was to see Tai Shan up and awake. They definitely made for interesting company.

We amused ourselves by pointing out a slumbering Tai Shan who was asleep on a grate so close to the wall that you could barely see him to passersby. It was really great to see the excitement on faces both old and young.

After several hours, Tai Shan rewarded our patience by getting up, meandering over to a limb, posing for some pictures and just being his cute panda self. After a little while, it was time for him to go to the indoors part of his home/exhibit while the keepers put out new tasty bamboo delights and other things in the main area.

This was well worth it because he was up close and personal, save for the sometimes dirty glass. But he really doesn't mind the audience when he's chowing down bamboo at a great rate. He also has this great ball (not unlike one that we have for our dogs) that dispenses treats when rolled around through various holes.

I spent a good amount of time taking many many pictures of this not-so-tiny panda bear. He looks almost full grown by himself, but I'm sure if I saw him next to his mom or dad, then I'd think otherwise. The mom was hiding the entire time, getting over a psuedopregnancy and dad was entertaining us by either being passed out in his grotto up front or passed out in his bamboo in the back.

I took tons of pictures (several hundreds) while I managed to whittle down to a respectable 94. I posted about a third of that to flickr which I hope you'll take a look at. All but two of them are of Tia Shan.

Here are some of my favorites:

Tian Tian passed out after consuming too much bamboo



Tai Shan after getting up from his nap



Close-up on Tai Shan



Making a Face

---

Believe it or not, I think I'm all caught up on those pictures. Now I need to catch up on several other posts... especially before I start work next week! Stay tuned!

East Coast Adventure, Part 3: Washington, DC & Surrounding Areas

What was originally going to be three posts will now be two. One, because I'm so completely behind that I'm never going to catch up at this rate. Two, because I'm just not feeling wordy these days. Despite two posts to the contrary.

I shan't write about Ike for awhile, just because it'll be more of the same. I still don't have power... surprise surprise. I must wait for news from afar.

So without further adieu, let the severely behind recap continue:

---

Though my trip began with a uber-brief stop in DC, the second weekend of my trip was spent in DC with best friend, LK and her roommate, JB. And JB's dog, Tucker.



Isn't he a cutie? He's such an enthusiastic, funny dog. I do miss him already. I'm not used to a large dog, but Tucker quickly made himself quite at home in my lap. Mind you, he's just a little too big to be a lap dog. But we still love him anyway. He was the source of great amusement throughout my time there.

Some of my ventures out of the house included obligatory visits to the monuments. I mean, hey, when in DC, you visit the monuments. JB and I went during a sweltering hot day, and LK, Tucker and I visited them several days later at night. The monuments themselves are quite stunning and beautiful, both lit naturally and artificially.

I'm only including a few below, please visit my flickr page to view them all. And since flickr's being obnoxious about uploading, they're not really in any sort of order.









I had a great time both with them and with other friends in town. My time there was both busy and relaxing, and yet it also felt too short. I didn't get to see one friend, and I would've liked to have spent more time with others, but that just means I have to come back and visit again soon. Or if JB, LK and others have their way... move there. Time will only tell.

Next up: A visit to the National Zoo.

East Coast Adventure, Part 2B: New England Aquarium

During my last full day in Boston, my tired feet protested any major walking adventure, so I had to pick something light. I chose to spend the afternoon at the slightly pricey, but thrilling, New England Aquarium.

I got to see tons and tons of fishes and other aquatic life, both large (HUGE sharks and turles) and small (microscopic, even) and even got to pet a friendly shark and stingray.

Despite the millions of unruly kids running around, and the not always easy task of shooting something through highly reflective glass in low light, I had a lot of fun.

Here are just a few of my favorite pictures from the afternoon:







Next up: Washington, DC.

East Coast Adventure, Part 2: Boston

Note: due to many circumstances, I'm horridly behind on my blogging - I'll catch up soon, I promise! Some of it has to do with actually combing through the tons of pictures I took during my trip!

Monday morning, as my host headed off to her job, I headed off to Boston via Bolt Bus. The trip was very uneventful and very economical, as I had snagged myself one of the fabled "Bolt for a Buck" dollar fares. Though not quite on time, I arrived in Boston none the worse for wear.

Due to circumstances out of our control, this turned out to be a really crazy week for my host. Thankfully, he was able to set me up with a place to crash (and eventually a place for his stuff to crash while he played the moving game) and handed me a Charlie card to get me from once place to another.

Let me say this, I love the MTA - it is really well laid out (at least for the things that I wanted to do; I have no idea if its well-suited to actual residents) and it always seemed to arrive in a timely fashion. It was clean and though often crowded, not stifling.



I had almost a week in Boston since I was supposed to hop up to Providence to visit a mutual friend of my host, but due to work scheduling conflicts, that unfortunately did not pan out.

I certainly kept myself busy and nearly walked my feet off. I did however get some time in with my host and his friends, a college roommate of mine and some time in with local and national history.

One day I decided to trek the famous Freedom Trail. It ranges from historic buildings and truly ancient burial grounds where famous people now reside. It's long, not always well-marked, but it was worth the trip to the past.



I also came across perhaps the best "no littering" sign ever:



Brilliant, isn't it?

Two more highlights from the trip:

The Best Breakfast Ever
Fried Matzo... I have never seen this on any menu in my life. If you're ever in Boston, check out Zaftig's deli... I promise you'll enjoy it.



Make Way For Ducklings

I grew up reading this book with my mom, so I had to go visit, and take pictures of it. Unfortunately, due to popularity and tons of kids who never wanted to leave, I had to wait a long while to take the shots. It was well-worth the wait and my tired feet and legs thanked me for the respite.



Check out my flickr photostream for more pictures. Boston actually has a Part 2b, as my last day found me visiting the New England Acquarium which is a whole blog post in its own.

Still to come: Boston 2b, DC, parts 1 and 2? and something new acquired.

East Coast Adventure, Part 1: New York City

Technically speaking, my East Coast Adventure started in DC, because that's where I flew in. But I was only there for less than 24 hours before I hopped onto the bright orange Bolt Bus to NYC.

SB met me in NYC and greeted me with smiles and a surprise: a boat tour of the 4 waterfalls that I was dying to see. We wandered around with a friend of hers from back home and then went on our tour.



The waterfalls were pretty amazing, and eco-friendly (no fish or other creatures were harmed in the flowing of the falls) and they were gorgeous to behold.



As an added bonus (perhaps because our boat was delayed for mechanical reasons), we ended up getting super-close to the Statue of Liiberty and I took some amazing photos of Lady Liberty.



That evening found us with an old pasttime for us, playing darts, which is how she met her lovely husband. As usual, she kicked my rear. Ah well, next time! Besides, I was sorely out of practice.

The next day found us running errands, including a trip to Mecca: aka the Fifth Avenue Apple Store. Unfortunately, it was because I needed a new charger for my laptop as mine had frayed to the point of dangerous and she was seeking a case for her new iPhone. My iPhone lust increased to incredible proportions as both she and her husband have them. I proved to her that they were quite handy and now she is loving it more than before. We also wandered around FAO Schwartz for the hell of it - it amazes me the stuff that is located within that store. We stayed and watched a pretty impressive demonstration of the big piano made famous by "Big" the movie.





That night found us making a trip to a nearby-ish Dave and Busters (think Chuck E Cheese for grownups) on motorcycles. It was certainly a new experience for me and a lot of fun. Have no fear, however, of me becoming a biker chick.

All in all, I had a blast - I adore SB and her husband and the trip was a bit brief. But I can't wait to come back and visit... and maybe go for another ride. :)

Next up: Boston.

[I'm a bit behind due to lack of internet access in Boston. I'll play catch-up soon. As usual, check flickr for all the rest of the pictures!]