Fifty kilograms of apples, 200 kilograms of bamboo, three human handlers and two adorable but lazy bears that are supposed to symbolize a maturing friendship between Canada and the People’s Republic of China.
That’s the cargo aboard the “Panda Express,” a specially modified FedEx plane that will land at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport on March 25 at the end of an almost 24-hour journey from the Research Base for Giant Panda Breeding in Chengdu, China. It’s also the end of a four-decade effort to procure the spotted bears that began with Pierre Trudeau’s initial visit to China in 1973.
I – Word Understanding
Handlers – a person who handles or deals with certain articles or commodities
Adorable – inspiring great affection; delightful; charming
Lazy – unwilling to work or use energy
Symbolize – represent
Maturing – develop fully
Modified – make partial or minor changes to (something)
Effort – the result of an attempt
Procure – obtain (something), esp. with care or effort
Initial – existing or occurring at the beginning
II – Have your say
1.The British government asked for a panda donation in exchange for providing a master’s degree in zoology to China free of any charge.
2.A strange fact about pandas is that they smell through ears and hear through nose.
3.Pandas have been a symbol of peace in China. For example, hundreds of years ago, warring tribes in China would raise a flag with a picture of a panda on it to stop a battle or call a truce.
006 Does the pandas’ visit represent a diplomatic bear hug between Beijing and Ottawa?
