San Francisco Mayor London Breed is heading to China next week to conduct some “panda diplomacy,” or, at least, to ask again for some, and to promote tourism to SF.
Breed has been lobbying for at least several months for a giant panda to make a visit to the San Francisco Zoo, and she will head to China next week to plead her case further. Breed has an official visit planned from April 13 to 21, as the SF Standard first reported, with scheduled stops in Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beijing, and Shanghai.
The mayor said this trip was meant to build on “momentum” that began with the APEC summit in November, when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited SF.
“I am honored to be invited to travel to China and meet with leaders in business, innovation and government, to cultivate economic opportunities and strengthen ties between San Francisco and cities across the region,” Breed said in a statement.
The visit is not being paid for out of taxpayer funds, but rather out of the privately…