A pair of pandas from China arrived at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, in a revival of so-called panda diplomacy after an 11-month pause that had left countless zoogoers disappointed by the absence of the lovable black-and-white bears.

周二，一对来自中国的大熊猫抵达位于华盛顿的史密森尼国家动物园，所谓熊猫外交迎来一次重生。此前11个月的暂停，让无数动物园游客对这种黑白相间的可爱动物的缺席感到失望。

After their long flight from China touched down at Dulles International Airport in Northern Virginia on Tuesday morning, the two 3-year-old giant pandas, Bao Li and Qing Bao, traveled in a police-escorted motorcade through central Washington. The bears rode in a pair of large FedEx delivery trucks bearing panda images on their sides and passed just blocks from the White House.

周二上午，两只三岁的大熊猫“宝力”和“青宝”从中国长途飞行抵达弗吉尼亚州北部的杜勒斯国际机场，乘坐警车开道的车队穿过华盛顿市中心。他们分乘两辆联邦快递的大型运货卡车，车的侧面印有熊猫图案，车队一度从距离白宫仅几个街区的地方经过。

“DC’s newest celebearities are HERE!” the National Zoo giddily posted on social media. A message on the zoo’s website said they would be available for public viewing beginning in January, following what zoo officials have said would be a quarantine period.

“特区的最新名人来了！”国家动物园在社交媒体上兴奋地写道。动物园网站上的一条消息称，在动物园官员所说的隔离期之后，他们将于明年1月开始向公众开放参观。

The transfer was first announced in a statement by the China Wildlife Conservation Association, which said the pandas would visit the National Zoo under a 10-year agreement.

中国野生动物保护协会在一份声明中首先宣布了这一转移，该声明称，根据一项为期10年的协议，大熊猫将进驻美国国家动物园。

The National Zoo, which announced in May that the pandas would arrive by the end of the year, was closed on Tuesday to allow for a safe and orderly transfer of the bears.

国家动物园于今年5月宣布，大熊猫将于今年年底到来。为了安全有序地转移大熊猫，该动物园于周二关闭。

国家动物园的三只大熊猫于去年11月前往中国四川省的一个自然保护区，该园50多年来首次没有了大熊猫的身影。

The pandas have long been one of Washington’s top attractions, and excitement was already building outside the zoo on Tuesday morning ahead of their arrival. Several television camera crews along with amateur videographers staked out the zoo’s entrance. Baked by Yael, a bakery across the street from the entrance, was offering panda-themed cake pops and panda black-and-white cookies.

长期以来，大熊猫一直是华盛顿最受欢迎的景点之一，周二早上，在他们到来之前，兴奋的人们已经聚集在动物园外。几个电视摄制组和业余摄像师守在入口处。对面的亚尔烘焙屋提供熊猫主题的蛋糕棒棒糖和熊猫黑白饼干。

The zoo was left without pandas for the first time in more than 50 years when three of the bears, two adults and their cub, left in November for a nature preserve in China’s Sichuan Province. Until then, pandas had been a constant presence in the nation’s capital since 1972, when President Richard M. Nixon visited Beijing to establish diplomatic relations between the United States and China.

去年11月，三只大熊猫（两只成年大熊猫和他们的幼崽）回到中国四川省的一个自然保护区，这是动物园50多年来首次没有了大熊猫的身影。在此之前，自1972年理查德·尼克松总统访问北京，建立美中外交关系以来，一直都有大熊猫在美国首都生活。

During the trip, Patricia Nixon, the first lady, mentioned her love for pandas to China’s premier, Zhou Enlai, who shipped a pair over two months later.

在当年的访问期间，第一夫人帕特里夏·尼克松向中国总理周恩来提到了她对大熊猫的喜爱，两个多月后，周恩来向美国送去了一对大熊猫。

Chinese pandas had remained at the zoo since then under a series of agreements between the two countries, until the last one expired without an immediate renewal last year.

此后，根据两国之间的一系列协议，中国大熊猫一直留在该动物园，直到去年最后一份协议到期，没有立即续约。

The absence of pandas from the United States prompted speculation that a recent downward slide in U.S.-China relations was to blame. Zoo officials have downplayed the idea, saying that the pandas had reached an age when they should return to China.

大熊猫在美国的缺席引发了人们的猜测，认为这是最近美中关系下滑所导致的。动物园官员对这一想法不以为然，称那几只大熊猫已经到了应该回到中国的年龄。

But China’s leader, Xi Jinping, suggested in a speech shortly after their departure last November that the pandas were a component of diplomacy between his country and the United States. Beijing was “ready to continue our cooperation with the United States on panda conservation,” Mr. Xi said during a mid-November visit to San Francisco.

但中国领导人习近平在去年11月大熊猫离开后不久的一次讲话中表示，大熊猫是中美外交关系的组成部分。在11月中旬访问旧金山期间，习近平说，北京“愿继续同美国开展大熊猫保护合作”。

Mr. Xi met with President Biden during that visit, in a summit that analysts say has helped ease tensions between the countries. A pair of pandas from China arrived at San Diego’s zoo in June.

习近平在那次访问期间会见了拜登总统。分析人士称，首脑会晤有助于缓解两国之间的紧张关系。6月，一对来自中国的大熊猫抵达圣地亚哥动物园。

In Washington on Tuesday, traffic halted along Connecticut Avenue as the panda motorcade rolled into the zoo’s entrance.

周二在华盛顿，在大熊猫的车队进入动物园的过程中，康涅狄格大道实施了限行。

Kirsten Svane, who wore “panda ears” on her head for the occasion, teared up as she used her phone to record the grand arrival.

柯尔斯滕·斯万头戴“熊猫耳朵”，她用手机记录了这一盛大场面，而且流下了眼泪。

“You know, when Mei Xiang, Tian Tian and Xiao Qi Ji left, I felt like I was losing my best friends in a way,” Svane said, referring to the pandas that departed last fall.

“你知道，当美香、添添和小奇迹离开的时候，我觉得在某种程度上我失去了我最好的朋友，”斯万说，她指的是去年秋天离开的三只大熊猫。

“You just really get to know their personality, what they like, what they don’t like, their habits, like everything,” she added. “I’m excited to be able to, you know, form that relationship again.”

“你真的已经了解了他们的个性，他们喜欢什么，不喜欢什么，他们的习惯，他们的一切，”她还说。“很高兴能够再次建立这种关系。”

As of early Tuesday afternoon, the National Zoo’s famed panda cam page was not active. But a message assured visitors that live footage would be “coming soon.”

截至周二午后，国家动物园著名的熊猫监控视频页面仍未开启。但一条消息向来访者保证，现场直播“即将到来”。