I’m back from the Brandywine Valley. M. Darcy and her friend Mark went there for the weekend and they let me tag along so see if I could find Rachel there.
Here I am on Friday in the car.
Our first stop was the Herr Potato Chip Factory where I got to see potato chips being made and got to eat some samples. Yummy!
We then stopped at a really big bookstore where I found the Canada section to do some research on where Rachel lives.
Next we stopped at QVC.
I asked these bears if they had seen Rachel and then did some diamond shopping for when I finally find Rachel.
Saturday was M. Darcy’s birthday! We celebrated in style and went out for dinner in Little Italy in Wilmington, DE. During the day, we went to Winterthur. I found an enchanted kingdom there and thought if I completed a quest through the kingdom, it would help me find Rachel. Here I am entering through the Fairy Ring and then I went over the Troll Bridge.
I was able to evade the troll and found this frog.
Unfortunately, he hadn’t seen Rachel so I continued on. Here I found a wishing well and made a wish to find Rachel.
Here I escaped from a scary monster and then checked the map with Mark to figure out my next route.
The next day we went to Longwood. Since I was stuck inside M. Darcy’s purse all of Saturday, she bought me a bag so I could travel in style.
Here I am at the Italian Gardens.
I found some trees that are just my height and found some black bamboo to eat.
It was a long day and I got a little sleepy.
Monday we returned to Arlington. On the way we stopped at a old mill
a winery
and a place with ice cream. I got a banana milkshake.
Even though I had a great time, unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find Rachel - even though I went to many different states (Virginia, Maryland, Delaware and Pennsylvania). Hopefully, I’ll be more successful the next place I visit.
May 30, 2006 at 1:19 pm | Travels | No Comments
Oh dear - I don’t feel so good this morning. M. Darcy was nice enough to take me to trivia night last night. It started off well, but then I started thinking about how much I miss Rachel and want to see her and then…I started drinking. And drinking. After that - its kind of a blur. I remember bits and pieces - more drinking, smoking, hitting on M.Darcy’s friends (the guys there were so cute! - don’t worry Rachel - you are still the only woman for me). I think I also got into a fight with a few people. I’m a mean drunk.
M. Darcy took a lot of pictures so hopefully I can figure out what went on. Honestly though, she never stopped taking pictures. I vaguely remember following one of her friends to the bathroom hoping to get lucky (I think he really liked me) and she followed us in with that camera!
Ok, now that I’ve seen the pictures, its all coming back to me. Here I am getting reading to play trivia - I’ve got the paper to fill out the answers.
Hmm, one little drink can’t hurt me.
I got to meet M. Darcy’s friends - Corimarti, LTG and Oaklander are so nice.
Time for speed round!
And yeah - with my help, we won game 1!
Time for some fun between games and some food.
Oh dear, here’s where I got a bit mean and into a fight with some people and into a knife fight with Corimarti.
I don’t feel so good.
Looks like I made a new friend. Oh dear, don’t be jealous Rachel.
Besides winning both games of trivia, I won a Bears Gone Wild Contest at the bar.
I got tired so I took a little nap.
And then M. Darcy and I went back to her house where I fell right asleep.
I had a really great time last night (everyone was so nice even though I was a very naughty bear). Rachel, without you here, I just can’t behave. M. Darcy is going to take me to the Brandywine Valley this weekend to help me look for you there.
May 25, 2006 at 10:15 am | Travels | No Comments
When she left for work today, I hide in her purse, just in case Rachel was at her office. Here I am sneaking out and going to her computer to check to see if Rachel is on line on TARflies.
During lunch, I sat outside with M. Darcy at the Library of Congress Adams building and enjoyed a Cherry Coke. 
We then walked over to the Madison Building to see if Rachel was doing any research on Pandas but still no luck.
May 24, 2006 at 2:26 pm | Travels | No Comments
Traveling by US Postal service isn’t exactly the poshest way to go, but I finally made it! The past few days, I’ve been hanging out at M. Darcy’s house in Arlington, VA.
While she’s been a work, I’ve been hanging out with her stuffed animals and catching up on my reading.
I’ve been able to read The Undomestic Goddess by Sophie Kinsella (which I talked about with Ox) and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (so I can talk about Harry Potter with Rachel when I finally get to meet her).
Today, I’m at her office in Washington, DC and tonight we are going to play trivia!
May 24, 2006 at 9:26 am | Travels | No Comments
That nap lasted all night! I must have been more tired than I thought. Partying, um, searching for your one true love can really wear a stuffed panda out.
After checking out of the hotel, I took a look at some of the souvenirs they were selling in the lobby. I found some kindred spirits.
Then, it was time for some breakfast.
I decided this was going to be my last day in New York. Since all of Rachel’s friends were gone or about to leave town, I didn’t think it would do any good to hang around any longer. I must stay focused on my mission! A little sight-seeing first wouldn’t hurt, though. Would it?
Growing up in the zoo, you don’t get a lot of education. So, I decided to go to the Museum of Natural History. I was quite frightened by all the stuffed, dead things in there and didn’t stick around them too long. I did, however, enjoy the dinosaur area – once I learned that they died billions of years ago and that they weren’t killed by humans. I learned this thanks to an information machine and some assistance from fellow small beings.
The exhibit was pretty cool. They even had a fossil that you could touch. I spent some time exploring it.
The dinosaurs must have been majestic. I can’t help but think about their fate and what it might mean for my fellow pandas. The information machine said that the dinosaurs became extinct. I remember reading something at the zoo that said pandas are endangered. Is endangered the first step towards extinct? I don’t want to see my mommy’s and daddy’s bones in some museum!
Before leaving, I had a nice talk with Einstein at the Unemployed Philosphers’ Guild.
Humans seem to value his intelligence, but I thought he was kind of odd. He did recommend a few good books to read so that I could understand about extinct a bit more. So, I decided to try and find them. I left the museum and went shopping.
I didn’t have much luck finding a copy I could afford, though. I wandered around and did some window shopping. I found more black and white animals and some fake pandas who weren’t as cute as me.
I even found a small version of the Statue of Liberty. I can’t imagine how big the real one is!
I decided to give M. Darcy a call and see if I could come visit her.
She was one of the new friends I’d made during my time in NY. She also lives near the zoo and I was feeling a bit homesick. She said I could come, but I didn’t have a lot of money left. How could I get to Arlington to see her? I figured I’d give the US Postal system a try. Nothing could go wrong with that, right?
May 19, 2006 at 4:05 pm | Travels | No Comments
