Princess Aiko, the only child of Crown Prince Naruhito and Crown Princess Masako, who is now a fourth-grader at Gakushuin Primary School in Tokyo, turned 10 on Thursday.
The princess, who expressed anxiety last year about going to school, has made the short commute to the school from the family's residence in the Motoakasaka district alone and attended classes from the first period of the day over the past two months, according to the Imperial Household Agency.
The 47-year-old Crown Princess had previously accompanied Princess Aiko to school or joined her in the classroom, but the Crown Princess is accompanying her daughter home from school less frequently now, according to the agency.