Reports have also revealed that the former royal declined to accept the US$1.2 million payment she was entitled to for leaving the imperial family. The couple seems to be determined to live as commoners do – which means earning their keep and living off of their salaries.

Below, we get a glimpse into what they’ve been up to so far.

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Their new Manhattan home

The luxury one-bedroom flat is said to be well-serviced with amenities, including a fitness centre, a yoga studio, library, screening room and landscape decks and terraces for barbecues and table tennis, among others, and is situated near Central Park and Lincoln Center.

Regular errand days and NYC walks

Following their move, the media has spotted the former royal running errands at Bed Bath & Beyond. Reports revealed the newly married Mako shopping for bath towels, coat hangers, organiser baskets and other home furnishing items. She went around the store alone, with nary a security personnel in sight.

Media also spotted the former princess getting lost around the Big Apple and having to ask people for directions. She eventually found her way back home, and was welcomed by her husband who helped her carry her shopping bags inside.

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Casual outfit sightings

Various reports also noted how both Mako and Kei seem to be comfortable wearing simple clothes as they get around New York. Seemingly content with their new life out of the spotlight, the young couple is often seen clad in coordinated colours, in neutral tones like blacks and greys, paired with denim blues and forest greens.

Kei’s long and winding law career

Kei graduated from Fordham University with a Juris Doctor degree and has been pursuing a career in law.

Months before his wedding, Kei took the New York bar along with 9,226 other hopefuls. The results were released late last year, and he unfortunately did not make it. According to a Reuters report, the two-day licensing exam has long been known as “especially difficult for foreign-trained lawyers” and the pass rate of the July bar was at 63 per cent.

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Currently a law clerk at Lowenstein Sandler, Kei took his next attempt at the bar last February and yet again failed. The bar is offered only twice a year (the next one is scheduled in July 2022) and Kei can have as many tries necessary, as the New York State has no restrictions with regards to the number of times one can take it.

Mako’s role at The Met

Mako, meanwhile, has been appointed to take on a new role at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in what reports cite as “volunteer work” or an “unpaid internship”.

According to People, she is working in The Met’s Asian art collection and is tasked with preparing the exhibit of paintings inspired by a 13th-century monk and his journeys through Japan introducing Buddhism.