Seeing the adorable Yunduo, Yumiko almost drooled, wishing she could hug and kiss Yunduo endlessly!
With a silly smile on her face, she took many photos of Yunduo.
As they strolled around, Yumiko gradually noticed something peculiar about the pavilion: "The design of the Panda Pavilion is so unique! The ground is wavy, and the walls are curved. Does it have any special meaning?"
"Yes, it's designed based on the traditional Chinese Yin-Yang Taiji elements! Since adult pandas have strong territorial instincts, the male and female pandas live separately. The Yin-Yang symbolizes harmony."
"That's amazing!"
Liu Wei said, "By the way, didn't you want to smell panda poop? I'll ask the guide."
Yumiko seriously asked, "How much does it cost to smell the poop?"
Liu Wei replied, "It's free."
Yumiko was shocked, "What!??? It's free?"
Liu Wei found it unbelievable, "Do you have to pay to smell panda poop over there?"
"Yes! Wow, this zoo is fantastic!"
Seeing Yumiko's excited and joyful expression, Liu Wei felt a bit of pity for her. Poor girl! Not only did she have to queue and be time-limited to see pandas, but she also had to pay to smell their poop.
Generously, he said, "Today, it's on me!"
Yumiko smiled sweetly, "Thank you, arigato! I've never had the chance to smell it before."
The guide happened to have fresh panda poop, freshly collected from the enclosure.
Yumiko looked at the yellowish lump mixed with bamboo leaves with fresh curiosity.
She brought her nose close, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, deeply inhaling.
She grimaced slightly, furrowing her brows, and took another sniff.
It was a bit overwhelming!
The guide found it amusing! Usually, boys were more eager to smell panda poop, not minding the dirtiness, while girls, concerned about their image, were more reserved and often declined.
This girl, despite being quite pretty, was surprisingly engrossed in the experience, even getting addicted after one sniff.
After a moment, Yumiko reluctantly raised her head, puzzled, "I heard panda poop smells like bamboo. Why does it smell a bit stinky?"
The guide laughed, "Today, the pandas ate more bamboo shoots, which makes their poop yellowish and smellier. Normally, when they eat bamboo leaves, their poop is green and smells better, like the fresh scent of bamboo."
Yumiko understood, "Oh!"
She listened intently as the guide shared interesting facts about panda poop.
After they left, Liu Wei apologetically said, "Sorry, we couldn't smell the bamboo leaf poop today!"
Yumiko, smiling brightly, said, "I think it was great! It's an experience! I'm so happy; I've never enjoyed watching pandas this much before!"
Liu Wei remembered something, "I think they also have toilet paper made from panda poop here! If you're interested, we can check the souvenir shop after the zoo tour."
Due to limited production, the toilet paper made from panda poop was scarce and quite pricey, costing 50 yuan per box.
Besides toilet paper, there was also Xuan paper. Some calligraphy enthusiasts bought a few sheets to write with a brush and found it better than regular Xuan paper, smoother to write on and less prone to ink running.
Toilet paper made from elephant poop was cheaper and sold reasonably well, attracting visitors who liked to explore and try new things.
Most of it was used for composting.
Yumiko exclaimed with delight, "Really! That's wonderful!"
"Yes, they also have various animal plush toys and clothes! The souvenir shop has many great items."
Leaving the Panda Pavilion, they arrived directly at the Golden Monkey Exhibit in the Primate Paradise.
Rippling streams shimmered in the sunlight, resembling a flowing painting.
Dabao was sitting on a perch, eating grapes.
With a blue face, smooth and beautiful red-brown fur, shimmering with a golden glow in the sunlight, and a round white belly facing the visitors, it looked clumsy and adorable.
Yumiko said, "Wow, I recognize this! It's a golden monkey! I love golden monkeys too!"
Dabao held a bunch of grapes, like green gems, each large, round, firm, and juicy.
Bringing them to its mouth, it ate with great focus.
Liu Wei, watching Dabao eat grapes, almost drooled, "Oh my, is that Sunshine Rose grapes?"
He was drooling, not to mention Lili, Yaya, and Xiaobao nearby, all eyeing Dabao's grapes greedily!
Xiaobao, clinging to Dabao's back, peeked over its face at the grapes, tugging at Dabao's fur and squeaking.
"Squeak~ squeak~"
"Dad, I want some too!"
Liu Wei laughed, "Look at how eager the kid is!"
Yumiko remarked, "They look so well-behaved, not fighting over food!"
Liu Wei explained, "The one eating grapes is Dabao, a male monkey! You can see Dabao is bigger than the other two; those are his wives, and the little monkey on his back is his child. As the head of the family, he gets to eat first, and there's an order to it."
Just as he finished speaking, he was proven wrong.
While Dabao was looking elsewhere, Xiaobao quickly grabbed a grape and ran off to eat it.
Dabao's body shook, gripping the grapes tightly!
But after glancing at Xiaobao, he didn't pursue the matter.
Lili gently groomed Dabao, as if saying, "See, I'm helping you groom, so share some grapes with me?"
Dabao ignored her, continuing to focus on eating grapes. Two grapes accidentally fell into the gaps of the perch.
He glanced down but didn't bother to pick them up, holding a large bunch in his hand.
Lili picked up the fallen grapes from between Dabao's feet, happily eating them, then lightly jumped, grabbing a rope bridge and swinging to another tree.
Yaya, unable to get grapes from Dabao, started searching the exhibit.
After a while, she found a reddish peach in the bushes!
With a crunch, she bit into it, munching away.
The peach was juicy and fresh, with juice splattering as she ate.
Soon, only the pit was left, which she discarded.
They wandered around the Primate Paradise.
The ring-tailed lemurs were also fascinating, with bright orange eyes, walking on the swaying ropes, their long black-and-white striped tails held high for balance.
With a light jump, they could leap high, from the tree trunk to the perch platform.
The gibbons, having finished their morning vocal performance, were now playing and walking on the tree trunks, with the leaves swaying.
Yumiko praised, "This place is wonderful; the animals all seem so lively."