“Goodbye”...Sandara Park, Boa, Seulgi, a warm goodbye to Fu Bao

As the giant panda Fubao, who was born in Korea in 2020 and has received much love, left Korea for China on the 3rd, the reactions of celebrities who have expressed their love for Fubao are attracting attention.

Seulgi, a member of the group Red Velvet, is well known as 'Pudeoki' (Pubao fanatic). Last Christmas, Seulgi posted a photo of herself hugging a panda doll on her SNS, and on February 17th, she posted a photo of herself seeing Fu Bao and commented, "I'm Seongdeok." Seulgi's affection for Fu Bao is so special that she participated in the OST 'You are Joy and Luck' of the SBS entertainment program 'Fu Bao and Installments 2'.

In particular, on the 3rd when Fubao left Korea, Seulgi shared a photo of Fubao through the Instagram story function and showed her support for Fubao. Seulgi left a message saying, "My dear Pooh. Thank you for giving me happiness. Can you stay strong and do well even after you leave? Many of Pooh's fans are cheering you on."

Sandara Park, a member of the group 2NE1 and a broadcaster, drew attention by crying out as she said goodbye to Fu Bao. On the 2nd, Sandara Park appeared on 'Fu Bao and Installments 2' and said, "The reason I fell in love with Fu Bao was my mother," adding, "All parents are like that, but she is old and in poor health, so she doesn't go out much. I went to see Fu Bao. “I was so shocked that he wanted to go to Yongin,” he said.

Sandara Park then said, "I was curious about who Fu Bao would be that would make a mother who hates going out feel that way. If you don't know about Fu Bao, you don't know. I don't think you can find out about Fu Bao just by watching it once or lightly. I watch Fu Bao videos every day and fall in love with Fu Bao. “I learned more about it. Watching Fubao made me so happy,” she said in tears.

In fact, Sandara Park headed to Everland on a rainy day to see Fubao for the last time and shared a proof photo. On February 20th, he left a message along with the photo saying, "I went to see Pooh one more time before I sent him away. I stood in line twice, successfully welcomed the entire Bao family, and bought some goods. I'm happy."

Singer BoA once made everyone laugh by failing to apply for the job of Fubao manager due to her overflowing love for Fubao. BoA shared a job poster looking for a manager for Fubao on her SNS and asked, "How do I apply for this?" and then, "It's already over? I can be a manager with sincerity. If it's for Fubao, I can wander around as well." “I could sing any song I want, but I was so busy that I saw the job opening news late. I love you, Fu Bao,” he wrote.

BoA's love for Fubao was conveyed to Everland, and she worked as Fubao's daily manager in July of last year. He said on his Instagram, "I am Seongdeok. Thank you to our Fu Bao for enjoying the flower bouquet and bamboo I made," and "Grandpa Kang Bao is also very grateful."

Unfortunately, BoA cleaned up her Instagram feed last month and made all posts, including those related to Fubao, private. Since he only shares posts and stories related to the music he is currently working on, he does not directly express his feelings about breaking up with Fu Bao.

In this way, Fubao has been considered a 'celebrity's celebrity' ever since her birth and has received so much attention and love that it has become known as the 'Fubao Syndrome'. More than 50,000 people participated in the event named 'Fubao' alone.

In addition, according to Everland, the cumulative number of visitors to 'Panda World' from January 4, 2021 to March 3, Fubao's last working day, reached 5.5 million. The number of views of Fubao-related videos also exceeded 500 million.

Accordingly, public interest and concern about what to do after repatriation to China was also great. The Chengdu Panda Base in Sichuan Province, China, which was mentioned as a place for Fubao to settle after returning to China, became embroiled in controversy over panda abuse. The controversy grew even bigger when it was revealed that Zhang Xin, a zookeeper who was investigated by Chinese authorities on charges of abusing Fu Bao's mother, Ai Bao, was recently appointed as the park manager.

However, public concerns subsided as the panda base where Fubao was headed was known to be the Sunsuping base in Sichuan Province. Many domestic fans hope that Fu Bao stays happy and healthy in China.

Reporter Lee Min-kyung, Ten Asia 2min_ror@tenasia.co.kr