Going beyond the bear necessities

The giant panda is an international conservation darling and a leading domestic tourist attraction. But the country is home to many other intriguing species that travelers can encounter if they know where to go, Erik Nilsson writes.

Three millennia ago, an ox, a donkey, a horse and a deer retreated to a woodland cavern to meditate. They snapped out of their contemplative state when a tyrannical king executed a just official.

They wanted justice. Fiercely.