{UAH} Finally some Luos who have manners . Head correct! lol! Gwoks!
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The height of etiquette: Michelle Obama towers over Japanese emperor as she stumbles in silver stilettos while attempting awkward curtsey
- Mrs Obama towered over Emperor Akihito and stumbled as she tried to bow, shake his hand and curtsey at once
- She also grabbed Japan's First Lady in a hug-and-handshake combination while she was mid-bow
- The awkward trip is being described as a 'makeup call' after Mrs Obama failed to accompany the President to Japan last year
- Tensions are high after death threats to the U.S. Ambassador to Japan
- Mrs Obama wore a green printed dress from Kenzo's Fall 2014 collection, followed by a striking flower-print suit
By Jake Wallis Simons For Mailonline
Published: 09:56 GMT, 19 March 2015 | Updated: 11:16 GMT, 19 March 2015
Michelle Obama has had an awkward start to her visit to Japan as she was pictured towering over Emperor Akihito and stumbling as she tried to bow, shake his hand and curtsey at once.
The First Lady, dressed in a florid combination of a blazer and skirt, dwarfed the Emperor in her silver stilettos, while he maintained his composure and smiled politely. She then squatted slightly while shaking his hand, seemingly trying to disguise the difference of height between them.
Mrs Obama, who is 5ft 9in tall, also caused embarrassment earlier in the day when she grabbed, Akie Abe, wife of Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, in a hug-and-handshake combination while the Japanese First Lady was trying to bow.
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I'm going in: Michelle Obama stumbles as she attempts an awkward combination of curtsey, western handshake and Japanese bow when meeting Emperor Akihito in Tokyo. Matters were not helped by the fact that she towers over him
Just nod and smile: The Japanese Emperor is the height of politeness as he greets Mrs Obama, who squats slightly as she tries to disguise the dramatic height difference between them
Don't look down on me: Mrs Obama is back to her full height, but the incline of her head indicates that she remains intensely aware of the fact that she is at least a head taller than Emperor Akihito, centre, and his wife, Empress Michiko, right
Body-check: Michelle Obama attempts an ill-fated hug-and-handshake combination when she meets Japan's First Lady, Akie Abe, who is caught in the middle of her bow. Excessive physical contact is frowned upon in Japan
Worried: Japan's first lady listened attentively to Mrs Obama's speech, but it is likely that in the back of her mind, she was concerned about the prospect of further hug-and-handshakes
Excessive physical contact is frowned upon in Japan, and strict traditions govern the practice of bowing. Despite intensive etiquette coaching, successive U.S. officials have famously got it wrong.
In 2009, President Barack Obama was was photographed bending to nearly a 90 degree angle when he greeted the Japanese Emperor at the Imperial Palace.
His efforts were widely mocked. The Drudge Report ran a banner headline reading 'Obama bows before Japan's emperor', and the LA Times ran a story headlined 'How low will he go?'
In another example of over-enthusiastic bowing, the President was pictured bowing to a robot in 2014 while the Japanese people around him remained upright.
In 1994, then-President Bill Clinton went to the other extreme, causing offence by inclining his head and shoulders forward and mysteriously pressing his hands together when he met the Emperor.
Awkwardness and tension underpins much of the First Lady's visit.
Her three-day trip is being described as a 'makeup call' after she 'snubbed' the Japanese by failing to accompany her husband during his state visit to Japan last year.
Japan's Prime Minister, Shinzō Abe, is due to make a reciprocal visit to America next month.
Mrs Obama's previous no-show upset members of the Japanese establishment so deeply that one politician, Kazuyuki Hamada, made the outrageous claim that the Obamas were getting divorced, as the president had been using Secret Service agents to cover for his extramarital affairs.
How low can he go: In 2009, President Barack Obama caused embarrassment when he was photographed bending to nearly a 90 degree angle when he greeted the Japanese Emperor at the Imperial Palace
Weird: In 1994, then-President Bill Clinton went to the other extreme, causing offence by inclining his head and shoulders forward and mysteriously pressing his hands together when he met the Emperor
Big in Japan: U.S. first lady Michelle Obama waves upon her arrival at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo, wearing a green printed dress from Kenzo's Fall 2014 collection, which costs around $700, offset by a chunky belt. Her visit is being described as a 'makeup call' after she snubbed the country last year
Diplomacy: Michelle Obama meets and greets upon arriving at Tokyo airport. Last year, she failed to accompany her husband on an official visit to Japan, which reportedly caused offence
Mrs Obama's trip comes at a time of high tension for Americans in Japan, as Tokyo police investigate phone calls threatening to kill U.S. Ambassador Caroline Kennedy and Alfred Magleby, the U.S. consul general based on the southern island of Okinawa.
Her arrival also coincides with a visit by former president Bill Clinton, who is in the country to deliver a keynote speech at the JFK International Symposium held at Waseda University in Tokyo.
During the five-day trip, Mrs Obama will also visit Cambodia - whose leader, Hun Sen, has a reputation for ruthlessness, and where child prostitution and human trafficking is rife - to highlight a campaign supporting education for girls.
There were so far no details on the cost of the trip, but the First Lady's group spent $222,000 over two days in hotel expenses during her 2014 trip to China, the Washington Examiner reported.
Mrs Obama, who is visiting Japan for the first time, will have separate meetings with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. She will visit historic sites in the ancient capital, Kyoto, before travelling to Cambodia.
In Tokyo she plans to announce, along with Japanese first lady Akie Abe, the Let Girls Learn initiative, a partnership supporting girls' education. The two will also meet with Japanese university students.
It is hoped that the community-based aid program, led by the Peace Corps and similar aid organizations, will help get 62 million girls back into school.
White House staff said that the program also reflects a U.S. commitment to be more involved in the Asia-Pacific region.
Mellow yellow: Mrs Obama leaves the plane and heads for her motorcade in Tokyo where she will meet with Japanese first lady Akie Abe to discuss her education initiative
Mrs Obama will be the first sitting U.S. first lady to visit Cambodia, one of 11 countries participating in the Let Girls Learn initiative.
Cambodia's government is led by Prime Minister Hun Sen, who has a reputation for ruthlessness and little tolerance for dissent. The country also has child prostitution and human trafficking problems.
Evan Medeiros, senior director for Asian affairs at the National Security Council, told reporters that while in Cambodia, Mrs Obama plans to discuss the need for open and inclusive politics and highlight basic values and principles that are important to the U.S.
In an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal earlier this week, Mrs. Obama called it a 'tragic waste of human potential' when 62 million girls worldwide are not in school.
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'It is also a serious public-health challenge, a drag on national economies and global prosperity, and a threat to the security of countries around the world, including our own,' Mrs. Obama wrote in her online travel journal.
'This visit is part of a journey that began decades ago, back when I was a little girl.'
YouTube celebrity Michelle Phan is joining Mrs. Obama in Tokyo to help spread awareness for the Let Girls Learn campaign, and pose questions to the first lady submitted through Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Watch your step: Michelle Obama disembarks upon her arrival at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo, wearing a positive, bright dress and eyecatching belt
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