PANDAmonium

One of the glorious benefits of living in D.C. is that EVERYTHING IS FREE. Okay, a bit of an exaggeration, but I was referring to most of the cultural items, like museums, concerts, galleries, exhibitions, etc. It completely blows my mind, since it seems like admission to everything in New York is at least $10+... like the Guggenheim, Museum of Natural History, the Bronx Zoo, the Brooklyn Aquarium, movie theaters ($13 regular, $18 3-D or IMAX), any club/lounge ($$$)... But it seems like Our Great Nation encourages an intellectual and curious spirit within all its citizens (in its capital city) through these gratis programs. I do very much appreciate.

Anyway, given the fact that I'm situated at Woodley Park for the next few weeks, I thought that I should get to know my neighbors better, Mr. and Mrs. Panda. Haha, yes... I live right next to the zoo. :)

That nebulous blob next to the arrow is a cheetah.

The prerequisite for a successfully curated "natural" habitat is that you must never be able to find the animals. The challenge is half the fun...?

"Please do not tap on the glass"

Boy Delinquent to the right played a mad percussion set on the glass window.

Orangutan is probably thinking: F U, kiddo.

Wow... girl pandas are either sluts of feminists, haha.

FINALLY I SEE YOU, Disinterested Celebrity Panda.

Was it Yuan-yuan, or Tian-tian, or Mei-mei, or Pu-pu? Your background collage almost made me believe that you were peacefully resting in the mountains of Szechuan and not in a glass cage surrounded by screaming children the average age of 3.

Devil wears Panda.

Panda purse or Panda pimp stick?

Decisions, decisions... what do you guys in the back think?

Big shoutout to my fellow HNCer Gene, who went along with my notion that checking out pandas today would help us understand China better. Next task: trying out General Tso's Chicken, Mushu Pork, and Fortune Cookies! Then I'll be ALL set for China. :p

I need to make a list of awesome (free) places to see before I leave D.C. at the end of August. I was feeling a bit lost with my time when I first got here, but now I feel like I'm sitting at a Vegas buffet -- so many things to devour, with only so much space in my stomach.