Japan hopes that two giant pandas from China will help warm bilateral ties strained over a territorial spat _ and give Tokyo's economy a jolt, too. The two 5-year-old pandas arrived at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo late Monday. They'll be the zoo's first since the 2008 death of its beloved giant panda Ling Ling.The Ueno area has been gearing up for the pandas' arrival for weeks, with banners carrying panda cartoons and shops selling novelty goods. Japanese media crews were camped at the zoo. «The pandas are finally coming to town,» said beaming Masahiro Kayano, a jewelry store owner in Ueno. «We are so excited.» The pair _ female Xiannu and male Bili _ arrived at their new home around midnight Monday, completing nearly 30 hours of journey from the panda preserve in southwestern China's Sichuan province. Despite late hours and the night chill, dozens of panda fans and neighbors gathered at the zoo's entrance to welcome them, calling their names and cheering as a truck carrying their cages went past them, showered by flashlights.
