There’s an extremely controversial attraction at a North Korean zoo.

Pyongyang’s newly opened zoo has a new star: Azalea, the smoking chimpanzee.

According to officials at the newly renovated zoo, which has become a favourite leisure spot in the North Korean capital since it re-opened in July, the 19-year-old female chimpanzee smokes about a pack a day.

They insist the chimp, whose name in Korean is Dallae, doesn’t inhale.

When thrown a lighter by her zoo trainer, the chimpanzee knows how to light her own cigarettes.

If a lighter isn’t available, she has also been taught how to light up from a lit cigarette if one is tossed her way.

While this kind of attraction would cause controversy and complaints in the UK, it seemed to delight visitors, who roared with laughter on Wednesday.

The chimpanzee, one of two at the zoo, sat puffing away as her trainer encouraged her.

The trainer also prompted her to touch her nose, bow thank you and perform a little dance.

Pyongyang zoo pulls in thousands of visitors a day with attractions such as elephants, giraffes, penguins and monkeys.

It also boasts a high-tech natural history museum with displays showing the origins of the solar system and the evolution of life on Earth.

Another of the most popular attractions that might come as a surprise to foreign visitors is the dog pavilion, which has everything from German shepherds to Shih Tsus.

The zoo also has performances featuring other animals trained to do tricks, including a monkey that slam dunks basketballs, dogs trained to appear as though they can do addition and subtraction on an abacus and doves that fly around and land on a woman skating on an indoor stage.

Renovations for the new zoo began in 2014, as part of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s efforts to create more modern and impressive structures and leisure centers around the capital.

The venue actually dates back to 1959, when Kim Il Sung, the nation’s first leader and the grandfather of Kim Jong Un, ordered it built on the outskirts of the city.

According to its official history, the zoo started off with only 50 badgers.

Source:
courtesy of METRO

by Nicole Morley

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