The Emperor and Empress, along with Imperial family members including the Emperor Emeritus and Empress Emerita, received New Year greetings from the public on Thursday in the first congratulatory New Year visit held in the Reiwa era.
The Imperial family stood on the Imperial Palace veranda, smiling and waving to the public. People waited in a long line from early in the morning in the garden plaza of the palace for the greetings, and the Imperial Household Agency opened the gate at 9:10 a.m., or 20 minutes earlier than scheduled.
At around 10:10 a.m., in the first of his five scheduled appearances throughout the day, the Emperor addressed the people and expressed concern about the lives of evacuees in the wake of typhoons and heavy rain last year, saying: "I hope this year will be a good, peaceful year without any disasters. At the beginning of the year, I pray for the good of the people in my country and in the world."
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