An An and Ke Ke appear at Ocean Park for first time

Enthusiastic visitors vie try to be the first to take a photo of the newest additions to Ocean Park

Large crowds of people visited Ocean  Park today, to be among the first to have a glimpse at  An An and Ke Ke, the two giant pandas gifted by Beijing to Hong Kong.

Many of those who turned up wore panda accessories or carried panda toys, and were all excited to line up for the 15-minute viewing period allowed for each group of guests.

Those who were the first to queue up said they made sure to wake up early to see the pandas immediately. Queuing started at 9am for the theme park’s 10am opening.

PINDUTIN DITO

Among the early visitors were some non-locals who were as enthusiastic to view the giant pandas which are endemic to China and are categorized  as “vulnerable” species.

An An, a male; and Ke Ke, female, joined four other pandas in Ocean Park when they arrived in Hong Kong last Sept 26.

Female Ying Ying and male Le Le became parents of twin cubs “Elder Sister” and “Younger Brother” in August.  Ocean Park says the new panda twins will greet the public in the first quarter of next year.

Basahin ang detalye!

Yesterday, Ocean Park chairman Paulo Pong Kin-yee announced that the two new pandas will retain the name given them in Beijing, despite a naming competition which drew more than 22,600 entries.

Pong, who presided at a pre-launch event attended by VIPs yesterday said the adjudicators in the naming competition unanimously decided that retaining An An and Ke Ke was “appropriate” given their positive implications.

According to the official, “An An” denotes a peaceful and stable future for Hong Kong while “Ke Ke” suggests unlimited possibilities for the city. Together, the two names means  “encore” in Chinese, suggesting a series of auspicious things that will come one after another.

The 2,500 panda sculptures were put on display at Avenue of Stars in TST

Meanwhile the Pandas on Parade opened at the Avenue of the Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui yesterday, and continued until today, Dec. 8.

The 2,500 panda sculptures were joined by a life-size mascot in entertaining thousands of visitors who went to see them throughout the day.

The display will pop up in various locations in Hong Kong until December 26, as a tribute to the global panda population, which has now exceeded  2,500.

Catch them at these places on these dates:  Dec 14-15 from 11am to 5pm at Ngong Ping 360 cable car;  Dec 21-22 from 11am to 5pm at Ocean Park, and Dec 25-26 from 11 am to 8pm at Sun Yat Sen Memorial Park in Western District.