Kochi students read braille with Japan's emperor and empress

Students in Kochi spent Monday showing how a library works when print is not the way in. The Japan Times, citing Jiji, reported on October 27, 2026, that Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako visited the Otepia Kochi Talking Book and Braille Library. Junior high and high school students from the prefectural school for the visually impaired were researching with braille books. Braille translation volunteers were with them. The emperor asked what the students wanted to read, and they ran their hands over the braille together.

In the afternoon the couple went to the Ino-cho Paper Museum in Ino, where tosa washi craftspeople were at work. The emperor asked whether making paper in winter is cold and hard. They also looked at an international print exhibition. At the prefectural art museum they saw work by artists with disabilities. Empress Masako told them, "Your work is so colorful, vibrant and wonderful." The couple returned to Tokyo that night, at the end of a two-day trip. The visit does not change how many braille titles the library can lend. It put students, translators, and makers in the same afternoon.