On Sunday, July 5, 2015, Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako of Japan met with Japanese residents living in Nuku’alofa, Tonga.
Yesterday, the imperial couple attended the coronation of His Majesty King George Tupou VI of Tonga.
On Thursday, July 2, 2015, Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako of Japan departed from Haneda Airport in Tokyo to attend the coronation of His Majesty King George Tupou VI in Nuku’alofa, Tonga.
The coronation will be held at 10:00 A.M. on Saturday, July 4, 2015, at the Free Wesleyan Centenary Church in Nuku’alofa. Following the ceremony a luncheon will be held at the Royal Palace. In the evening, a gala dinner held at the Masefield Naval Base in Touliki Moor.
On Thursday, June 18, 2015, Their Imperial Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan visited the Tenko-en Orchard in Higashine in the Yamagata Prefecture. During their visit the emperor and empress picked cherries and met with the owners as well as staff from the farm.
Thereafter, the imperial couple visited the Higashine City Hall where they were warmly welcomed by local government officials as well as by the people from the town.
On Wednesday, June 17, 2015, Their Imperial Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan visited the Kita-Harao district in Zao, Miyagi, Japan.
The Japanese newspaper, Asahi Shimbun, writes that the community of Kita-Harao “…was developed through the toil of Japanese who left the battle-scarred South Pacific island of Palau after World War II. [The emperor and empress met with three residents] who were among those who settled [in the district] from Palau at a stone monument commemorating the establishment of the community.”
On June 10, 2015, Their Imperial Highnesses Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako of Japan arrived at the National Museum of Nature in Science in Tokyo to view the exhibition, The Great Amazon.
The exhibition is the largest of its kind:
“…ever mounted and focuses mainly on the biodiversity of the Amazon Basin. Using fossils and preserved specimens, displays of live creatures, and stunning visual and audio content the exhibition introduces the mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, fish, insects, plants and fungi that inhabit the Amazon. The exhibition also showcases how the indigenous peoples of the Amazon have interacted with the plants and animals around them.”
Photo courtesy of Asahi Shimbun
On Wednesday, June 10, 2015, Their Imperial Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan attended a memorial service at Kannonzaki Park in Yokosuka in the Kanagawa Prefecture to commemorate the “…commercial vessel sailors..” who died during the Pacific Theater of World War II.
On Friday, June 5, 2015, Their Imperial Majesties Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan held a farewell audience with the President of the Philippines, Mr. Benigno Aquino, at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo.
During President Aquino’s four-day state visit to Japan he received Japan’s highest honor, the Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum, from Emperor Akihito.
The Royal Correspondent 