Empress Masako of Japan made a rare overseas diplomatic trip last week, and she packed a whole lot of gorgeous pearls in her luggage!
The Emperor and Empress of Japan made an official visit to Indonesia last week, departing from Haneda Airport in Tokyo on Saturday, June 17. While Emperor Naruhito has made numerous diplomatic trips during his reign and during his tenure as crown prince, it’s much rarer to see Empress Masako join him on such a visit. It’s wonderful to see how her comfort level and confidence has grown in her new role over the past few years.
As usual, other members of the imperial family headed to the airport to see off the Emperor and the Empress on their trip. This time around, it was Crown Prince Fumihito, the Emperor’s younger brother, and Crown Princess Kiko.
Both Empress Masako and Crown Princess Kiko wore the elegant daytime “uniform” of the imperial family at the airport: tailored skirt suits with matching hats and accessories, plus pearls. Kiko also added a gold brooch to her ensemble.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his wife, Yuko, were at the airport for the imperial departure as well.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako landed in Indonesia later that day. Masako wore the same light gray-blue suit and hat that she’d worn for her departure from Japan, as well as the coordinating hat (which has lovely beaded embelliments), handbag, shoes, and gloves.
The imperial couple were greeted at their hotel in Jakarta with flowers.
They also took the time to chat with several Japanese students who had gathered in the hotel lobby to greet them.
Empress Masako’s program for the visit was a bit lighter than her husband. Her next official engagement took place on Monday, June 19, when she and the emperor met with Indonesia’s presidential couple in Bogor.
They joined President Joko Widodo and his wife, Iriana, as they planted a tree at the Presidential Palace.
The couples also toured Bogor’s Botanical Gardens together.
And the Emperor and the President held a joint press conference as well.
Empress Masako wore a lovely blue skirt suit with a white lace blouse and white accessories for the presidential meeting. Her handbag matched her suit, and her hat also featured a strip of the same fabric as an embellishment.
As usual, she accessorized with pearl earrings and a single-stranded pearl necklace.
Here’s another angle on the pearls. Most Japanese imperial ladies don’t have pierced ears, and you can see the clip fasteners of the earrings in this photograph.
June 19, evening: Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako met descendants of remaining Japanese soldiers who stayed in Indonesia after World War II.
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📹 https://t.co/WwTnXsN5yU pic.twitter.com/crEjgkFWxX— Prisma 😷 (@ImperialJPNfan) June 20, 2023
On Monday evening, Empress Masako joined Emperor Naruhito for a reception where they met the descendants of Japanese soldiers who settled in Indonesia after World War II. Masako wore a vibrant royal blue ensemble and pearls for the occasion.
On Tuesday, June 20, the couple headed to Kalibata for a visit to the Heroes Cemetery.
There, they took part in a wreath-laying ceremony.
Empress Masako again wore light gray-blue to pay her respects at the cemetery. Her suit featured lace embellishment at the cuffs that matched her blouse.
A matching piece of lace was also added to her hat. And, once again, she wore pearl button earrings and a single-stranded pearl necklace.
Empress Masako’s participation at Darma Persada University and vocational high school was a late decision. It was originally planned for Emperor Naruhito to attend June 20 afternoon events alone.
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📹 https://t.co/N88HGKK5Qo pic.twitter.com/jdFli6Paqt— Prisma 😷 (@ImperialJPNfan) June 21, 2023
On Tuesday afternoon, Empress Masako made a surprise joint appearance with Emperor Naruhito at Darma Persada University in Jakarta. She wore a trouser suit with a houndstooth jacket, plus pearl earrings and a pearl station necklace.
June 20, evening: Emperor Naruhito & Empress Masako met Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers and Japanese residents, including Haruka Nakagawa, former member of ‘AKB48’ who transferred to Indonesia-based sister group ‘JKT48’
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📹 https://t.co/vwpFeqd8Pl pic.twitter.com/qcg5GUhwz6— Prisma 😷 (@ImperialJPNfan) June 21, 2023
For an evening reception on Thursday, where the imperial couple met with even more Japanese citizens living in Indonesia, Empress Masako wore a lovely textured skirt suit with pearl earrings and a double strand of small pearls.
June 23: Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako departed from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport near Jakarta after 11am. They will return to Japan in the evening.
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📸 https://t.co/rWeQX97Omm pic.twitter.com/UPaaDzW8U2— Prisma 😷 (@ImperialJPNfan) June 23, 2023
The rest of the visit included solo engagements for Emperor Naruhito. The couple departed from Indonesia on Friday, June 23, to head back to Japan. Empress Masako wore a lovely textured jacket with pearl earrings and another double-stranded pearl necklace for the official farewells.
June 23: Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako returned to Japan in the evening from their state visit to Indonesia. They were greeted by Crown Prince Akishino, Crown Princess Kiko and other officials.
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📸 https://t.co/3CbwQN2opo pic.twitter.com/r7nkZuv4xl— Prisma 😷 (@ImperialJPNfan) June 24, 2023
She wore the same outfit, sans hat, for the couple’s return to Tokyo that evening. They were greeted at the airport by Crown Prince Fumihito and Crown Princess Kiko, who wore a light blue suit with pearl earrings, a single-stranded pearl necklace, and a small brooch.
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