A birthday party for Xiang Xiang, a Japan-born panda who returned to China last year, has been held in Japan's Tokyo, attracting nearly 200 giant panda lovers who expressed sincere wishes to the Xiang Xiang family.
TOKYO, June 14 (Xinhua) -- A long queue in front of the China Cultural Center in Tokyo, panda lovers, wearing panda elements, gathered to celebrate the 7th birthday of Xiang Xiang, a Japan-born panda who returned to China last year.
A birthday party for Xiang Xiang was held on Wednesday, attracting nearly 200 giant panda lovers who expressed sincere wishes to the Xiang Xiang family.
The female giant panda Xiang Xiang was born in June 2017 to mother Shin Shin and father Ri Ri at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo. In February last year, the celebrity panda returned to southwest China's Sichuan Province, known as the hometown of giant pandas, and many Japanese fans have been missing their beloved Xiang Xiang.
Yuhei Nishida, who traveled from Saitama prefecture to attend the birthday party, was lucky enough to get a place to see Xiang Xiang when she made her public debut in Japan. Nishida was immediately attracted by Xiang Xiang's cute posture and visited her every week at Ueno Zoo.
"I hope Xiang Xiang will live a healthy life forever," Nishida said, adding he also plans to visit Xiang Xiang in Sichuan.
Fumiko, who just visited Xiang Xiang in Sichuan this April, was fascinated by Xiang Xiang's cute and naughty character. "I hope she will grow up and become a graceful 'young lady' and build a bridge of friendship between Japan and China," Fumiko told Xinhua.
"I hope princess Xiang Xiang will grow up healthily with love and care of the Japanese and Chinese people. I will visit you in China every year," said Ito, who has already visited Xiang Xiang in Sichuan three times in just over a year.
Asako Kobayashi and Mariko Abe, wearing T-shirts with giant panda prints, "Happy 7th Birthday of Xiang Xiang" and baby portrait of Xiang Xiang on bags, are devoted panda lovers. They said that at first, they liked Xiang Xiang, and later they were interested in Chinese culture.
Abe told Xinhua that because of Xiang Xiang she fell in love with Sichuan Opera face-changing, and now she likes Sichuan Opera even more, adding she "looks forward to going to China to experience Chinese culture."
Kobayashi and Abe said that now Xiang Xiang has been able to understand some commands in Chinese, they have started to learn Chinese and look forward to communicating with Xiang Xiang in Chinese when they meet again.
Head of the Panda Protection Institute of Japan Toshimitsu Doi said that he hopes more Japanese people will fall in love with giant pandas and travel to China, the hometown of giant pandas, to enhance their understanding of China.
Addressing the birthday party, Ouyang An, director of Tokyo office of the China National Tourism Office, expressed his hope that through the celebration, giant pandas, ambassadors of friendship between China and Japan, can play a positive role in enhancing mutual understanding between the two peoples and promoting China-Japan friendship. ■
