John & Hope @johnandhopeabroad-blog - Tumblr Blog

Train to Croatia 🚞 #nofilter #croatia #rijeka #adriaticsea

Hungarian folk music at the Vigato Concert Hall #budapest #travel (at Vigadó tér)

Layover in Zurich for a quick stroll along the lake #nofilter #arewethereyet #twostopsugh #freewithpointsthough (at Zürich, Switzerland)

#twostopsugh #nofilter #arewethereyet #freewithpointsthough

Goodbye Bangkok #travel #bangkok #Thailand (at Eastin Grand Hotel Sathorn)

#thailand #travel #bangkok

That is a bucket of rum and coke. And this is our last night in the islands. #Thailand #kohtao #travel (at FIZZ beachlounge)

#travel #thailand #kohtao

Crazy mosaic over the temple doors #Thailand #travel #bangkok (at Wat Pho)

#travel #bangkok #thailand

The hidden gorge (or secret canyon...we can’t remember the name) in Bali was one of the coolest hikes/swims we’ve ever had. Honestly, we thought it was just a cool scenic lookout, we’d take some pictures, have a snack, and head home. But we actually had to hire a guide to help us navigate through the three canyons, and at times were shoulder-deep in water! He showed us the best rock ledges to climb through and even with his help, the rapids almost took us down a few times. Luckily, the camera was safe. And the GoPro had a waterproof case, so were able to document some of the less strenuous stretches. It was definitely a workout, but it was so beautiful! And not a tourist in sight. Just monkeys and a bunch of giant lizards that he jokingly referred to as crocodiles.

Getting a job as a panda keeper requires a degree in biology, and apparently it’s very competitive. This one is training two one year old twins to climb trees and forage for bamboo. He takes photos and records their progress. This one passed the test!

One of the best parts of the day was feeding carrots and special “panda sticks” to the panda bears. Two of them were injured in the wild and rescued. One was missing a leg and the other was missing half of his nose. The panda keeper said it was probably from territorial fights with other wild pandas. The facility’s main goal is to release as many pandas into the wild as possible, but because they can’t be completely rehabilitated, both will remain at the panda base. The photos look like they’re stuck in cages all day, but that’s only because other volunteers were cleaning the outdoor area. When it gets too hot, they’ll go inside. But almost every panda we saw was sleeping, eating, or rolling around in their outdoor space.

We took a lot of panda photos! It was cute to see the younger siblings sharing a space together. Once they reach a year old, the panda keepers have to separate them because they’ll get in fights and steal each other’s food.

More shots of the curious panda and us in the indoor area hosing it off

In Chengdu, which we affectionally refer to as “Cheng Dudes” because it’s so much more laid back than Beijing, one of the highlights was volunteering at the Panda rescue center. We wore the official panda keeper uniforms, cleaned the outdoor and indoor panda areas, fed them snacks, and got to replenish their bamboo. Whenever we were cleaning up outside, they’d be inside, and vice versa. It was really funny when we left our coke bottles on the ledge and the panda came over to take a sniff!

No filter. Last few days in Asia holy 🐮 #kohtao #thailand #travel #soakitallin (at Sairee Beach, Koh Tao)

#thailand #soakitallin #travel #kohtao

Koh Samui in a (coco)nutshell #nofilter #thailand #travel #kohsamui (at Coast Beach Club & Bistro)

#nofilter #thailand #travel #kohsamui

Reserved seating @ Chiang Mai airport ✈️ (at Chiang Mai International Airport)

Khao soi 👌 #nofilter #travel #thailand #chiangmai (at Chiang Mai, Thailand)

#chiangmai #nofilter #thailand #travel

River taxi in Bangkok from our Airbnb to downtown #travel #Bangkok #Thailand (at Bangkok Metropolis, Thailand)

#thailand #travel #bangkok

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John & Hope