meet the characters on ni hao, kai-lan

Kai-lan Chow is a playful, adventurous preschooler with a big heart. She speaks both English and Mandarin Chinese, and she's super excited to share her language, her culture, and her playtime with her animal friends and the viewers at home. Kai-lan is a natural leader but she's also thoughtful and caring with a gift for helping her friends when they really need her.

YeYe is Kai-lan's playful, thoughtful and caring grandpa. He was born in China and lovingly passes on his exciting traditions to his granddaughter. He provides Kai-lan with gentle guidance, leading her to find her own answers, at her own pace.

Rintoo is a rambunctious five-year-old tiger and one of Kai-lan's best friends. He even shares a special roaring handshake with Kai-lan: "tiger-tiger roar!" He has a thirst for adventure and thrills and often pounces headlong into the action without giving it much thought. But underneath the bravado, he's a sweet caring tiger who looks out for his friends.

Tolee is a five-year-old koala that LOVES pandas. He always thinks before he acts and sometimes worries too much, but he never lets that stop him from having a great time with his friends. Kai-lan and her friends can always rely on him for good ideas.

At three-years old, Hoho the monkey is the youngest of Kai-lan's friends. He's full of boundless energy and nothing makes him happier than being the center of attention. He can often be found jumping on his friends' heads or playing his turntables as the resident DJ.

Look up in the sky, she's flying by balloon. Lulu is a six-year old pink rhino who loves to dance and help her friends. She likes playing house and having tea parties, but she's as strong as a rhino! Kai-lan and her friends often call on lulu for help, but mostly they just love having her around.

Mr. Sun At the start of every episode, Kai-lan wakes up Mr. Sun so she can start her day. With the help of the viewer, Mr. Sun rises and showers down smiling sun fuzzies to tickle us.

In one corner of Kai-lan's backyard is a teeming mini-metropolis of ants called Ant City. The ants serve very important roles in the community: they deliver mail, they build things, and they love to play with Kai-lan and her friends. San San is their leader with two right-hand ants Bubu and Fufu.