Tears and pictures as Japan sends its “house” large panda to China

TOKYO (Reuters) – With tears, waves and farewell cries from followers, an enormous panda born in Japan was whisked away to China on Tuesday from the Tokyo Zoo the place it was raised.

Xiang Xiang, who has been very fashionable at Tokyo’s Ueno Zoo since she was born there almost six years in the past, was despatched to China below an settlement whereby large pandas are loaned to zoos world wide, however China retains possession of any of those loaned bears. and their descendants.

Xiang Xiang was initially speculated to be reinstated in December 2020, however this was delayed as a result of coronavirus pandemic.

Xiang Xiang, the zoo’s first pure panda, was the primary to be born there in years, including to her reputation. One other child panda died shortly after being born in 2012. Her dad and mom are nonetheless on the zoo, as are youthful twin siblings born in 2021.

About 60,000 individuals utilized for two,600 spots to see her on Sunday, her final day, with some girls in tears as they watched her snack on bamboo.

The media recorded her journey as she was loaded onto a truck by a panda-badged forklift early Tuesday morning, and zoo workers lined the street as she left. Public broadcaster NHK broadcast footage of Xiangxiang being caged on the airport moments earlier than he was loaded onto the flight.

A crowd gathered at Narita Airport in Tokyo, taking footage, waving and shouting because the aircraft she was touring took off.

“Thanks Xiang Xiang,” wrote a fan on the zoo’s Twitter web page. “Your allure and charisma have introduced our metropolis to life.”

Reporting by Eileen Lies. Edited by Lincoln Feast.

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