Japanese Princess Sayako, the emperor's only daughter, was greeted by thousands of well-wishers as she prepared to marry a commoner at age 36 and leave the world's oldest monarchy.

    Sayako, 36, wearing a simple Western-style long white dress and a single-strand pearl necklace, climbed into the black Prince Royal limousine as formally-dressed royal minders bowed deeply and clapped.

    As the limousine slowly cruised to the nearby Imperial Hotel, the princess smiled and waved to thousands of well-wishers along the road.

    Sayako will marry Yoshiki Kuroda, a 40-year-old urban planner for the Tokyo Metropolitan Government in a Shinto-style ceremony at a specially built altar at the 118-year-old hotel.

    The princess and part-time bird researcher will turn into a full-time housewife after wedding .

    In the late afternoon, the princess-turned-commoner will don a kimono once worn by her mother and toast with champagne at a reception attended by 150 guests, including her parents.

    Sayako is the youngest child of Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko and the last of their three children to wed. No female royal has married in her late 30s in recent history, but the Japanese are increasingly settling down late as women juggle lifestyles and careers.

    Because Japan does not allow women to take the throne, Sayako must leave the imperial family when she marries Kuroda, a childhood friend of her brother.

    Faced with a succession crisis, Japan is studying allowing women to assume the Chrysanthemum Throne and letting princesses keep their royal status after marriage. But any change would be too late for Sayako.

    The princess has been preparing for her life in middle-class Tokyo, taking driving lessons and receiving a one-time government payment of 1.3 million dollars as an allowance for becoming a commoner.

    明仁天皇惟一的小女儿、现年36岁的纪宫公主今天将下嫁给一位平民，从此离开这个世界上最古老的皇室家族，成千上万祝福者前来向她表示问候和祝愿。

    纪宫公主今年36岁，她身穿简朴的西式白色长裙，带着一长串珍珠项链，坐进皇太子的黑色豪华轿车里，其他穿着正式的皇室招待们深深地向她鞠了一躬，并伴以掌声。

    豪华轿车缓缓驶向附近的帝国饭店，纪宫公主微笑着向马路两边成千上万的祝福者们挥手致意。

    在这座有着118年历史的饭店中特地修建了一座圣坛，纪宫公主将在这里举行日式婚礼仪式，和现年40岁的东京都政府城市规划员黑田庆树完婚。

    纪宫公主原先是兼职鸟类研究员，婚后她将成为全职家庭主妇。

    下午晚些时候，已经成为平民的纪宫公主将穿上母亲曾经穿过的和服参加一个招待会，将有150名贵宾参加招待会，其中包括她的父母，她将在招待会上高举香槟，以示庆贺。

    纪宫公主是明仁天皇和皇后美智子最小的孩子，也是他们三个孩子中最后结婚的一个。在日本最近历史上，皇室中还没有一位女性成员直到30多岁才结婚的。但是在日本，随着女性要同时处理生活方式和职业生涯，她们结婚也越来越晚。

    日本不允许女性继承王位，因此，纪宫公主嫁给黑田庆树后必须离开皇室，黑田庆树是她哥哥儿时的朋友。

    面对一系列危机，日本皇室正在研究允许女性继承天皇王位，并允许女性在婚后仍然保留皇室身份。但对于纪宫公主来说，无论什么样的改革都太晚了。

    纪宫公主已经开始为即将到来的东京中产阶级生活做准备了，她不仅参加了驾驶课程，还接受了日本政府特别拨出130万美元的一次性补助，确保她成为平民后生活无忧。