Taiwan flight leaves for mainland to pick up pandas

TAIPEI, Dec. 22 (Chinese media) -- A Taiwan-based Eva Air

flight left here Monday morning for the mainland to pick up two pandas offered

to Taiwan as a gesture of goodwill.

The plane took off from Taipei at 8:30 a.m.. It is

expected to arrive at the Shuangliu Airport in Chengdu, capital of southwest

China's Sichuan Province, at 12:10 a.m.

A caretaker of the Taipei zoo trains

Yuan Yuan, one of the two pandas donated and will be sent by the Chinese

mainland to Taiwan, at a panda breeding base in Ya'an, southwest China's

Sichuan Province Dec. 21, 2008.A Taiwan-based Eva Air flight left

here Monday morning for the mainland to pick up two pandas offered to

Taiwan as a gesture of goodwill.(Chinese media

Photo)
Photo

Gallery

It will return to Taiwan with the panda pair, Tuan

Tuan and Yuan Yuan, whose names together mean "Reunion," at about 5:00 p.m.

Tuesday.

Two staff, a panda keeper and a veterinarian, from

the Wolong Nature Reserve in Sichuan will accompany the pandas to Taiwan.

They will bring with them a week's worth of the

pandas' favorite food, such as steamed corn buns and fresh bamboo. Other

necessities include medicines like motion-sickness pills.

After arriving in Taiwan, Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan

will be housed in a four-story building at the Taipei city zoo. They will have

the first floor and an outdoor playground to themselves.

A caretaker of the Taipei zoo feeds Yuan

Yuan, one of the two pandas donated and will be sent by the Chinese

mainland to Taiwan, at a panda breeding base in Ya'an, southwest China's

Sichuan Province Dec. 21, 2008. (Chinese media Photo)
Photo Gallery

Five staff from the Taipei zoo have been at the

breeding base in Sichuan since October to become familiar with the pandas.

The mainland announced in May 2005 it would donate

two giant pandas to Taiwan. Their departure has been delayed for more than three

years. Improved cross-Strait ties make their journey to Taiwan possible.

The 4-year-old pandas, one of China's most endangered

species, have been living at a breeding base in Ya'an, Sichuan, for the past

several months. Their previous home, the Wolong Nature Reserve, was seriously

damaged in the strong earthquake that struck southwest China on May 12.

The pandas are expected to meet the public during the

Spring Festival, the Chinese lunar new year, but this will depend on how they

adapt to the new environment, Yang Hsiao-tung, director of Taipei's "department

of information and tourism", said earlier.

Taipei zoo gears up to welcome

mainland panda pair

TAIPEI, Dec. 18 (Chinese media) -- The Taipei zoo opened its

new panda house to the public and media on Thursday, showcasing its full efforts

to welcome the giant panda pair presented by the mainland.

The new panda house covers an area of 5,500 square meters

with an investment of 300 million New Taiwan dollars (9.1 million U.S. dollars),

said Jason Yeh, the zoo director. Full story

Official: Mainland panda pair to

travel to Taiwan on Dec. 23

BEIJING, Dec. 17 (Chinese media) -- The pair of giant pandas

offered by the Chinese mainland to Taiwan will travel to the island on Dec. 23,

a mainland official announced here on Wednesday.

State Council Taiwan Affairs Office spokesman Li Weiyi

made the announcement at a press briefing. Full story

Mainland panda pair ready to travel to

Taiwan

CHENGDU, Dec. 12 (Chinese media) -- The pair of giant pandas

offered by the Chinese mainland to Taiwan are in good health and ready to depart

for the island at any time, officials said here Friday.

Two staff, a feeder and a veterinarian, from the Wolong

Nature Reserve in southwestern Sichuan Province will accompany Tuan Tuan and

Yuan Yuan, whose names said together mean "unite," to Taiwan, Deputy Director of

the China Giant Panda Protection and Research Center Li Desheng told Chinese media. Full story