News & Politics

Adorable Bear Adorably Confused By Snow

Bei Bei in 2016. Photograph by Shellie Pick via National Zoo.

Don’t think about the horrible snowstorm that’s about to cripple all of Washington for the next two or three days. Just look at the wonder on giant panda cub Bei Bei’s face when the National Zoo’s staff let him experience the dusting DC received on Wednesday. The Zoo says that when Bei Bei went out in the yard Thursday morning, he was a bit stymied by the powdery white stuff on the ground.

“Keepers took him outside to a small behind-the-scenes area and let him explore in a light dusting of snow for a few minutes while Mei Xiang ate her breakfast in her outdoor yard,” the zoo reports. “Keepers said he wasn’t quite sure what to make of the powdery snow.”

And who in DC hasn’t been utterly perplexed by a bit of snow?

Staff Writer

Benjamin Freed joined Washingtonian in August 2013 and covers politics, business, and media. He was previously the editor of DCist and has also written for Washington City Paper, the New York Times, the New Republic, Slate, and BuzzFeed. He lives in Adams Morgan.