Karen Pence, the wife of the U.S. vice president, on June 7 hosted Akie Abe, wife of Japan’s prime minister, for tea and a tour of the vice president’s residence, located on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Observatory in Washington.
The visit reflects the two countries’ long friendship and decades of hospitality.
Pence and Abe stand on the large wraparound porch of the vice president’s three-story brick home, built in the Queen Anne architectural style popular when it was constructed in 1894. It was built originally as a home for naval officers, but vice presidents and their families began living at the 4-hectare compound in the late 1970s for security purposes.
During the tour, Pence shows Abe her artwork of the U.S. Capitol building, with assistance from an interpreter, Hiromi Chino (center). Pence paints watercolors of homes and historical buildings.
Pence and Abe (along with Abe’s interpreter, Kyoko Inoue) walk the grounds of the vice president’s residence. The Naval Observatory still operates on the premises, where scientists continue to observe the movements of the planets and stars to measure the exact time and publish astronomical data for navigation purposes.
Pence and Abe tour the Family Heritage Garden on the property. Some of the flagstones are engraved with the names of the vice presidents, family members and family pets who have lived at the residence.
Abe plays with Harley, an Australian shepherd and Pence family pet, as Pence holds family bunny Marlon Bundo.
“Lovely visit with Mrs. Akie Abe, wife of the Prime Minister of Japan,” Pence wrote in a tweet. “We enjoyed a wonderful conversation and tour of the @VP Residence. And I introduced Mrs. Abe to our pets! We truly enjoyed ourselves!”
Pence watches as Abe departs.
While Abe was visiting Pence, Prime Minister Shinzō Abe met with President Trump at the White House in advance of an expected summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore on June 12.
