Newsfrom Japan

Tokyo, Feb. 1 (Jiji Press)—Visitors flocked to Tokyo's Ueno Zoo on Thursday as the public viewing of its female giant panda cub, Xiang Xiang, on a first-come, first-served basis started the day.

Some 1,200 people queued in front of the zoo in Taitō Ward even before it opened at 9:30 a.m. (12:30 a.m. GMT).

Upon the opening, Xiang Xiang fans who were eagerly waiting for the day to arrive rushed to an area where they can get tickets to see the panda.

They saw her hang from and nearly fall off a tree, and bite into logs. The viewers' excitement reached its peak when Xiang Xiang toddled over toward them, with some letting out squeals of delight and others saying aloud, "Here she comes!"

"I took a lot of really good photos of Xiang Xiang when she came near me," said Yasue Rin, 14, from Tokyo's Shinagawa Ward, who stood in line waiting from 7:30 a.m.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]