Panda cub Bei Bei leaves for new life in China

Departure prompts fan's long-distance mission

On Nov 7, Elspeth Grindlay, who lives in Ayr, a coastal town in southwest Scotland, flew more than 3,100 miles (5,000 km) to Washington on short notice after learning about Bei Bei's departure.

"Because I watched him grow up from a tiny cub, I had to return before Bei Bei left," Grindlay said on Nov 12.

"It's just sad. It's a sort of bittersweet. It's lovely to come, but about a week from today, he is going," she said.

It was Grindlay's 10th visit to see the pandas in Washington since 2001. She said the Smithsonian's National Zoo is a "lovely place" for panda fans, because unlike the London Zoo, there are no fences, walls or glass outside, so the animals can be seen more easily.

She said she had made friends in the "panda community" all over the world. During her current trip to Washington she met one such friend from Germany and another from Los Angeles. The three women had shared pictures and online posts about pandas, but had never met before.

"There's a lot of people that pandas have helped get over a bereavement or a hard time in their lives," Grindlay said.

When her brother died four years ago, she said she took consolation from pandas. For a time, she made a 320-km round trip every two weeks just to see them at the nearest zoo.

"Pandas are a sort of nice link, something that just makes you happy again," she said.

Grindlay said she has a huge collection of panda toys, posters and themed decorations, some of which are on display at a museum in Edinburgh.

She has even placed her collections in the windows of her home to celebrate different events such as Christmas. Grindlay said she was glad that people from many walks of life, including traffic wardens and lawyers, along with children, all left with smiles after seeing her panda memorabilia.