Born on a Saturday morning in July of 2005, Tai Shan was the focus of all admiration at the National Zoo, and now the time has come for the US to say goodbye to the black-and-white bear, as he is all set to depart from the Dulles International Airport, in a special flight to the Orient.

When born, almost hairless and surprisingly small, the bear who loves pears was nicknamed "butterstick". Tai Shan went on to gather the love and admiration of millions of people who caught glimpses of him in person or through the zoo's pandacams. He gathered a fan club, panda merchandise, bumper stickers, videos, license plates and much more.

He was designated as Washington's most important citizen by Mayor Adrian Fenty.

On Thursday at 8 AM, the adored panda will be taken to China, where he will be joining a breeding program to help increase the population of the endangered species, and the driver is all set to be Dennis Halsey, who drove Tai's parents, Mei Xiang and Tian Tian, from the airport to the zoo when they arrived from China 10 years ago.