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Japanese Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko took a morning stroll at the beautiful Lodhi Gardens and interacted with schoolchildren, diplomats and a section of lay people on their historic visit here.
The royal couple took an early morning stroll at the Bada Gumbad Gardens and expressed interest in various trees and plants, especially the Asoka and the Peepul, pointing to them as they walked on the lawns. The national Bonsai park inside the gardens also caught their interest.
"The Emperor took a lot of interest in the flora and fauna. He was very curious about the Asoka tree, because you know it was the Buddha who had carried the Asoka tree to Japan, so perhaps that was why he was interested," said S K Mathur, advisor, floriculture, NDMC, who was among those who escorted the royals around the garden.
Mathur said the Emperor appreciated the bamboo collection and the bonsai plants.
"He was impressed with the Buddha coconut tree and wanted a plant of this. We are trying to work out something. He also expressed wish to have a plant of the Neem, a tree, of which every part, I told him, contained medicinal properties."
Spread over 95 acre and 38 hectares, Lodhi Gardens, which houses the tombs of Mohammed Shah and Sikander Lodi, contains architectural works of the 15th century Pashtun dynasty. It is also home to around 300 species of flowers and 50 species of birds and also contains a public national Bonsai park.
As the royal couple entered the Lodhi Gardens, school children raised their right hands in a wiggle, a traditional Japanese greeting.
Siddhartha Baman, a Class VIII student of Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, was among the lucky few who got to shake hands with the Emperor and speak with him.
"He asked me whether I had been to Japan. I told him that I heard a lot of things, especially about their automobile industry. I am really into automobiles and the contribution of Japan is really great," Siddhartha said.
It was then the turn of the Empress, who the schoolboy says quizzed him about Suzuki, the Japanese carmaker.
"She started laughing and asked me whether Suzuki is popular here and I said oh yes," Siddhartha said.
His schoolmate Akshala said she found the couple "really sweet and nice".
"I shook hands with both of them and the Emperor asked me about the hand wave we did in his honour and asked me whether I came often to the Gardens," she said.
