Princess Nori, the only daughter of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko, offered thanks to her parents as she turned 36 on Monday, her last birthday as an Imperial family member before leaving the palace to marry a commoner.
"What I think has been truly meaningful for me is to have lived for the past 36 years with Their Majesties and to have been able to observe and learn from them," the princess said in a written response Thursday to questions from reporters.
Born in 1969, the princess recalled that "life in a special position has had both beneficial aspects and also some difficulties," according to the written response provided both in Japanese and English.