TOKYO — First lady Melania Trump had a nature-oriented Japanese cultural experience Monday at Akasaka Palace, where she learned that bamboo trunks can create music and also serve as flower vases. Mrs. Trump and Japanese first lady Akie Abe were entertained by tunes from a “shakuhachi” bamboo flute, played by flutist Yosuke Irie, with a set of bamboo trunks standing upright like a screen behind him. Children performing Japanese dance put a smile on Mrs. Trump at the end of the highly stylized and educational program. The first lady and President Donald Trump arrived in Japan on Saturday for a four-day state visit. Trump’s visit is seen as a highly ceremonial one as Abe steps up his courtship to stay on the good side of Trump amid tense trade talks.

Source: National Post May 27, 2019 05:04 UTC