The giant panda Bei Bei has arrived in southwest Sichuan province from his birthplace of Washington, where he spent the first four years of his life.

State broadcaster CCTV says Bei Bei reached the Ya’an Bifengxia Base of China’s Giant Panda Conversation and Research Center early Thursday.

Bei Bei will be quarantined for one month while he adjusts to the time difference, learns to eat local foods and picks up Sichuanese dialect.

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

Bei Bei was a beloved figure at Washington’s National Zoo, where he was conceived through artificial insemination and born to pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian in 2015.

Under the terms of the zoo’s agreement with the Chinese government, any panda born there must be sent to China after they turn 4 to prepare for China’s breeding program.

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

 Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

 Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)

Giant panda Bei Bei eats bamboo at the David M. Rubenstein Family Giant Panda Habitat of the Smithsonian National Zoological Park before heading back to China, Tuesday, Nov 19, 2019, in Washington. (AP PhotoMichael A. McCoy)