"明仁天皇迎八十歲誕辰"

日本最近慶祝了明仁天皇的八十歲大壽，上千人湧入皇居向他致敬。明仁跟美智子皇后於1959年成婚，並於1989年他父親死後繼承皇位。

儘管天候寒風刺骨，估計仍有24000人參加他的生日致詞，而明仁天皇從皇居東邊的花園陽台向祈福的人們招呼致意。皇居通常都不對外開放，一年只開放給大眾兩次──天皇的生日以及新年次日。

儘管君主政體在二戰後就式微了，日本人仍持續對君主政體展現尊敬。在這之前，帝王和皇室在大眾心中的地位近乎神祇般神聖。

明仁天皇讚賞他太太美智子皇后，說她是第一位自己帶小孩的皇后，並在他形容為「孤寂」的追尋來領導世上最古老君主政體的路上，一路伴他左右。明仁天皇表示：「有皇后在我身邊，這給了我安慰和喜樂，她一直都尊重我的立場且支持我。」明仁天皇也就2011年的海嘯對大眾表達關心，說：「想到災民們，我會在我有生之年都為所有民眾祈福，願大家都能幸福。」

(International) Emperor Akihito Turns 80

Japan recently celebrated the 80th birthday of Emperor Akihito, with thousands of people swarming the Imperial Palace in his honor. Akihito married Empress Michiko in 1959 and inherited the Chrysanthemum Throne in 1989 after the death of his father.

An approximate 24,000 people attended his birthday address, despite bitter cold weather conditions, and the Emperor greeted well-wishers from a balcony in the East garden of the Imperial Palace. The Imperial Palace is usually closed to outsiders, but opens to the general public twice a year on the emperors birthday and the second day of the New Year.

The Japanese continue to show respect for the monarchy, despite its loss in stature in the aftermath of World War II. Prior to that, emperors and the royal family held a quasi-divine status amongst the general public.

Emperor Akihito applauded his wife, Empress Michiko, for being the first empress to raise her own children and keep him company in what he described as the lonely pursuit of leading the worlds oldest monarchy. Akihito stated, It has given me comfort and joy to have by my side the empress, who has always respected my position and stood by me. Akihito also expressed concern for the general public in the wake of the 2011 tsunami, stating, Thinking about disaster sufferers, I will spend my days wishing all the people happiness.

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