Panda base on the hunt for caretakers

Being a panda caretaker could be the most enviable and fun-filled job in the country.

Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday that a caretaker at the China Giant Panda Protection and Research Center in Ya'an, Sichuan province, will earn 200,000 yuan ($32,000) a year, have the use of an SUV and receive free meals and accommodation.

Recruitment for the position started on Saturday in Beijing and one of the organizers, club.sohu.com, called the job the "Chinese version of a caretaker of an island on the Great Barrier Reef".