Happy Birthday, Hua Mei (華美)!
I never tire of telling the story of how a six-month-old giant panda cub in San Diego Zoo led to my love for giant pandas.
Hua Mei – the first giant panda cub to be born and to survive past 3 months in the Western Hemisphere. Her name, a combination of China (華) and USA (美), represents the partnership that resulted in her birth – China, which loaned her parents to the San Diego Zoo, and USA, which provided the place for her birth.
It’s 10 years since I saw her public debut on the San Diego Zoo website’s pandacam. I went to see her in person in May 2001. And had to wait 6 years before seeing her again in September 2007; by now, she was living at the Wolong Panda Centre in China. Since then, I’ve seen her every year, and hope to be able to see her every year till … whenever.
I know her American fans were sad when she left San Diego Zoo in 2004, but it was good news for me because it meant she would be nearer to me, and cheaper for me to go and see her.
I’ve yet to see her on her birthday. So I do the next best thing – celebrate her birthday, and what she means to me, online.
Love you, Hua Mei. Happy birthday.
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Picture taken during my March 2010 visit
