皇居千鳥ヶ淵で夏の夜の「灯ろう流し」

Welcome to Japanese Daily News. I'm Maya. Today is July twenty-fourth. This week, on two summer evenings, about two thousand glowing lanterns floated on the moat of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Let's listen.

Now let's break it down, sentence by sentence.

At Chidorigafuchi, the moat of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, a lantern-floating event was held on the evenings of July twenty-second and twenty-third.

It means a moat, the water around a castle or palace.

A lantern here is a small light made of paper. People put a light inside and float it on the water at night.

It means a light or a lamp.

This year, about two thousand lanterns floated on the water. The whole area was filled with beautiful light.

It means to float.

On the lanterns, people wrote feelings of thanks and wishes for peace.

It means peace.

The event ran from seven to around eight in the evening, and watching it was free.

It means free of charge.

People who wanted to float a lantern bought one in advance for two thousand yen each. They could not buy one on the day itself.

It means in advance, ahead of time.

The event was organized by Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward and others. In spring, this moat is a very famous spot for cherry blossoms.

It means famous.

Let's listen to the whole story one more time.

Time for a short quiz. Listen and try to answer.

About two thousand lanterns.

Two thousand yen each.

Cherry blossoms.

That's all for today. On two summer evenings this week, about two thousand lanterns carrying people's thanks and wishes for peace floated on the moat of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Thanks for listening, and see you tomorrow.