On the morning of the 4th a splendid procession of ceremonial carriages passed the Nijubashi area of the Imperial Palace. It was Israel’s new ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary and party, on their way to present credentials.
Hearing that such a scene could be seen, I walked a little over ten minutes from Palaceside Building to the starting point: the corner of Babasakimon Crossing on Hibiya-dori, in front of Meiji Seimei Kan (Meiji Yasuda Life head office). At 10:30 a two-horse “zagyo-shiki” carriage arrived; the new ambassador (a woman) waiting inside the building = photo below stepped in at once and they left. Two more carriages, perhaps for staff, followed, hemmed before and after by about ten horses of the Imperial Guard mounted police,
and turned right at Babasakimon Crossing. It took less than five minutes. A faint rain sprinkled, only a moment, and the carriages ran safely away. After that they should have gone from the Palace outer garden through the main gate to the south porch of the Palace, where the new ambassador presented credentials to His Majesty. The foreign minister or another minister of state is to stand in attendance; I wonder who stood that day.
The Palace escort course for the ceremony is fixed; the return loops through Wadakura-mon back to Meiji Seimei Kan. Imperial cars or carriages are provided. According to the Imperial Household Agency site, only a few countries in the world still use carriages — Britain, Spain, and the like — and in Japan many ambassadors ask for a carriage. Most carriages used for escort were built from the end of Meiji through early Showa and have artistic value as well, they say.
I tried to learn who Israel’s new ambassador is, but it does not seem to be on the embassy site, and I could not tell.
I may get scolded for saying this, but because it was the Israeli ambassador, onlookers around Meiji Seimei Kan felt like twenty or thirty (including passers-by), and the police were relatively relaxed. Caroline Kennedy is said to be arriving as the new U.S. ambassador; then crowds will surely press in and security will be tight. Still, I would rather like to see it.