Entree Kibbles: Amazing Asian Animals Zone - Giant Panda Adventure & Goldfish Treasures @ Ocean Park Hong Kong #amazingasiananimals #oceanparkhongkong

Living in the continent of Asia means i shouldn't be THAT amazed by the Amazing Asian Animals zone at Ocean Park but there is an animal species so adorable; i don't think i have heard anyone literally saying they dislike it!

The Giant Pandas! Yes, i know we have a pair in Singapore too but i don't specifically make a trip to River Safari just to look at Kai Kai and Jia Jia. Furthermore, we had already paid for the tickets for Ocean Park.

See, pandas are darn cute! Given their cuddly outlook and clumsy movements, they draw huge fans whether domestically or internationally. Their popularity gives rise to the term Panda diplomacy since 1950s.

Le Le and Ying Ying, the pair of Giant Pandas gifted to Hong Kong was to commemorate the 10th year anniversary of the handover in 2007 and as mentioned on the plaque, "Ocean Park was entrusted to take care of them".

Scenery in Sichuan; the territory of the Giant Pandas! Even though i have been to China a few times, i have yet to visit Sichuan as my parents had travelled there before. Maybe i should ask the Great Kon if he is interested, especially when his nickname is Panda!

Effort to add the Chinese element on even the exit doors.

The enclosure; i did realize that it bears resemblance to the one at River Safari. High ceiling with boulders and trees to replicate the natural environment in Sichuan.

This is Le Le, the male Giant Panda! A piece of good news in during the COVID-19 pandemic; Le Le and Ying Ying successfully mated for the first time after reaching maturity! You may read here.

Did you know that it cost a lot of money to buy bamboos to feed the pandas? And contrary to popular misconceptions, the Giant Pandas are not herbivores.

Guess this is a place for children to know more about the Giant Pandas. As it had been a long day for us, i can see the fatigue in Alex's body language and know i shouldn't take advantage of his willingness to accompany me by spending more time on information that's pretty generic.

Hmmm... isn't this a bit too small for the pandas?

Oh, it's actually the enclosure of the red pandas that were missing in action! Even though their Chinese name refers to the little pandas, they were more related to the raccoon rather than the panda family!

The Chinese Giant Salamander; the largest of its kind in the whole wide world, it has an interesting Chinese name by the name of Wa Wa fish. Apparently, it vocalizes like an infant; hence the name "wa wa".

Trivia; Chinese Giant Salamander exists since the dinosaur age and at the moment, is critically endangered. It doesn't help that their meat is said to be delicious.

Sprawling enclosure for Ying Ying; bigger than the 3-room flat i stay in, i can only say that the recent "circuit breaker" imposed by the government to reduce the spread of COVID-19 infection has made me empathized with the animals kept in the zoos.

That's Ying Ying!

More photographs of the 14-year giant panda; let's hope she will get pregnant after the successful mate with Le Le and maybe i will check out their baby the next time i visit Hong Kong.

Exiting the Panda enclosure and wondering what animals live in this open-air one.

It's the Asian small clawed otter; another adorable animal that has taken Singapore by storm; to the extent i think people would be naming it the national animal of Singapore! By the way, the otters in Singapore are smooth-coated otters which larger than the Asian small clawed.

Next stop: Goldfish Treasures!

Even though gold fishes had its heyday back in the 80s, their popularity has since waned. giving way to luohan, discus, arowanas etc. Therefore, it's nice to bring them back in focus as they had been a mainstay for more than a thousand years in Chinese history.

Well, i wouldn't know that the ancestor of the goldfish is the wild gibel carp. To me, it had that plain look similar to most freshwater fishes!

First golden gibel carp appeared somewhere during the Three Kingdoms period. Since then, many different varieties were bred and the exhibition space featured quite a few.

For your viewing pleasure. Aside from the live display of goldfishes, you can also find artifacts with goldfish artwork on them; evidence that people do appreciate their beauty back in the Chinese monarchy period.

What!?!??! There are over 300 varieties of goldfish?! Thankfully, you can group them in the five types as listed above. To me, the most unique has to be the Wenyu type.

An interesting, goldfish-designed aquarium installed above a pond. With all the bells, you would have thought it's a traditional tank to keep precious varieties and deter thieves!