The Story of Max: Tiger Exhibit? What Tiger Exhibit!

Every day brings new adventures and today did not disappoint. First of all, Max had another good night last night, sleeping from 7 until about 5:30. His cold got a little worse last night, so we gave him some Motrin, which seemed to work its magic. When he woke this morning, he had 101 degree fever, and he wasn't feeling so great. So more Motrin, and another 2 hour nap. When he woke up again he was happier, so we went to breakfast.

After breakfast,

Max was still feeling o.k. by then and his fever was down, so we did what any American family would do - we went to Wal Mart!! :) It was, of course, huge!! We went there to buy more diapers, more formula, some more outfits (now that we know what size he is), and chocolate. Basic survival gear :).

Afterwards, Max was still doing great, so Michael took us to the Chongqing Zoo, which is known for its panda exhibition. The Chinese are very proud of their pandas - it is their national animal, much like the American eagle is ours. At the panda exhibit, people were very excited about the pandas hanging around - it was almost like Shamu at Sea World. Parents waving, kids excited. It was cute. It was obvious that they felt very proud to have these animals.

Did you know that there are only about 800 pandas left in the world? They eat over 40 pounds of bamboo, and are actually not very social animals. They like to be left alone. Pandas give birth to one or two panda cubs, which are the size of a mouse at birth. Pandas live to be about 20 years old when they are in captivity, 25-30 years when they are in the wild. (That was for all you students out there!!)

We then proceeded to the tiger exhibit. But people weren't really paying attention to the tigers. We seemed to be more of the exhibit than the tigers! Chinese are very curious. Older Chinese women, in particular, have no qualms about coming up to you, check on your baby to see if he is dressed right, talk with you, approve or disapprove, etc. And that's just what happened.

One woman started examining Max (who was sleeping at the time), and, whum, we were surrounded by a dozen curious people. It can get a little weird to be the center of attraction and people tugging at you, tugging at Max, and talking to you. As Americans, we are not used to being so up close and personal with strangers. However, people here do not have these social boundaries or rules - they will come right up to you and interact, no matter if you speak their language or not. I have yet to meet an unfriendly Chinese person! That's what makes these scenes so sweet. They are all so positive, optimistic, and hopeful. But I was grateful that I had put a hat on Max!