Feb 15th, 2011 at 10:45AM: The only giant panda cub born in the United States last year got a name this morning. And his name is Po.
In a bit of cuddly promotional goodness, actor Jack Black, who voices the character Po in the "Kung Fu Panda" movies, was on hand this morning at the little guy's naming ceremony at Zoo Atlanta.
And the whole thing was sponsored by Dreamworks Animation. Who would have guessed it?
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Chengdu posts
Jack Black visits Atlanta zoo to name 'Kung Fu Panda' cub
Feb 15th, 2011 at 10:45AM: The only giant panda cub born in the United States last year got a name this morning. And his name is Po.
In a bit of cuddly promotional goodness, actor Jack Black, who voices the character Po in the "Kung Fu Panda" movies, was on hand this morning at the little guy's naming ceremony at Zoo Atlanta.
And the whole thing was sponsored by Dreamworks Animation. Who would have guessed it?
...Smurfs theme park to be built in China
Sep 7th, 2010 at 5:30PM: Papa Smurf and his band of blue men (and one sexy Smurfette) are headed to China.
The Wall Street Journal reports today that a $2.9 million Smurfs theme park is set to open in three to five years in Chengdu.
Chengdu is best known for its pandas, but there's a movement there to smurf up the tourism numbers, and this new theme park is part of the plan.
The Smurfs were dreamed up in 1958 by ...Once in a lifetime: How to track pandas in the wild
Feb 9th, 2008 at 11:00AM: What you see in the shot here is a panda turd. And not just any panda turd, it's a fresh panda turd. (Don't worry. They smell like fresh bamboo.) If you want the chance to find your own panda turds, there's perhaps no better place than to trek to Wanglang Panda Reserve. That's what I did last March, where I stopped as part of a big story for Science about the booming panda population. ...Suzhou Bookworm now open for business
Nov 18th, 2007 at 11:01AM: Back in July I took a daytrip to Suzhou, China (about 40 minutes by train outside of Shanghai) and visited the future site of The Bookworm's latest English-language library cafe location. Owner Peter Goff took me on a tour of the construction site, which you can see here (scroll down to the photos at the bottom of the post.) I was happy to learn this week that the transformation is complete and ...Chinese Buffet - Part 9: The Bookworm Grows in China
Aug 13th, 2007 at 9:40PM: Chinese Buffet is a month-long series that chronicles the travels of an American woman who visited China for the first time in July 2007.
Before I depart on any trip, I always do some research on bookstores in the cities I'll be visiting. (My own personal Bookstore Tourism planning, of course!) As I researched the bookstore situation in China, I learned about the large state owned operations and ...Panda Spotting Becomes Easier
Nov 14th, 2006 at 1:05PM: It just got a little bit easier to see Giant Pandas--there are more of them. The Chinese government reports that 2006 has been a banner year for panda cubs. According to China Daily, the government's official English language newspaper, artificial insemination done at panda breeding centers around China has produced a record 27 healthy cubs, out of 30 born live. Scientists first started breeding ...Building or Chinese Menu Item?
Sep 20th, 2006 at 3:00PM: Seeing pictures of the proposed new biomedical research center in Chengdu, China (Szechuan province) reminded me of some menu items I tried in that city last year. One reporter called the proposed building "the blob."
The Szechuan province, of course, is home to that terrific spicy food that is ubiquitous in Chinese restaurants everywhere, usually on the menu right next to an asterisk or a nearby ...
