The
Night with Firecrackers
It is said that one man’s
trash can be another man’s treasure, and
one guy’s hope can be another guy’s dope.
On the New Year’s Eve,
Wuhan, the capital city of Hubei province in
the central China, reverberated with cheers
and firecrackers, and the deafening
exhilaration intensified when the midnight
approached. While this was all exciting to
the men (and wo-men) in the city, it was
terrifying to the non-men in the zoo.
A giant panda named Qingqing (庆庆) reportedly woke up to the
sound of explosions and got hysterical,
refusing to go back to bed again. In the
other part of the zoo five peacocks used this
opportunity to play out a real-life drama of
great escape.
Qingqing at the
Wuhan Zoo
A happy fella until the sound of
terror scared the hell out of him
... for nothing
After having received
hours-long trauma counselling from his carer
and being comforted with snacks and
head-massage, the frantic Qingqing eventually
calmed down. Yet the story with the high fly
escapees is not that simple. One landed in
the foyer of a grand hotel, but his unusual
appearance immediately raised the suspicion
of the receptionist; consequently instead of
offering the guest a room, he phoned the zoo,
and that cut short the fugitive's courageous
adventure . As for the other four, by the
time the Chinese report was published, they
remained at large.
Birds at the Wuhan
Zoo, feeling at home and ignoring
the scaremongers
Perhaps it can also be said
that one species’ enjoyment could be
another species’ torment, and one group’s
firecrackers might be another group’s
firearms. Hmmmm ……. (作沉思状...)
