Jul 2, 2009, 11:00 GMT
Japan's Emperor Akihito is "looking forward" to his upcoming trip to Canada.
The 75-year-old monarch and his wife Empress Michiko are due to depart Japan tomorrow (03.07.09), for a 15-day tour of Canada and the US Pacific Island state of Hawaii.
It will be the first time Akihito has visited Canada since he travelled to the North American country in 1953 as a 19-year-old prince on his first ever official trip.
In a statement, the royal reminisced about his initial journey to Canada, revealing he stopped there on the way to Britain to attend the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.
He said: "The official residence of the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia in Victoria, which we will be visiting during this trip, was, in fact, the place where I spent my first night ever in a foreign country."
Akihito also recalled the legions of Japanese expats who waited at train stations from Vancouver to Toronto to get a glimpse of the emperor as he passed.
He added: "I deeply touched that many people of Japanese ancestry came to the stations to greet me warmly in spite of the severely cold weather".
The royal couple will stay in Canada from July 3 to 14, visiting Ottawa, Toronto, Victoria and Vancouver.
On the way back to Japan, they will visit Hawaii, but are not expected to visit the site of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, which occurred during World War Two.
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