As Japanese Ambassador Koshikawa Kazuhiko bids his farewell to what was his second home for the past three years, I looked back at the time I spent time with him when he invited me to his home for a taste of his special “sinigang sa kamias.”
The invitation was made to meet me after he learned that I regularly wrote about his social media posts. I should have told him it was a pleasure to read his posts about how much he loves spending time in the Philippines.
Personally, it was easy to notice his X (formerly Twitter) posts because he replies just as easily about important issues like maintaining a maritime rules-based order and respecting the rule of law in our shared region and also because his posts remind me of my childhood fascination with Japanese anime.
But when it comes to how much he enjoys the Philippines, Koshikawa has always been witty, cheerful, and his tweets have even been extremely personal for a foreign ambassador, talking about his love for certain Filipino foods and visiting famous Pinoy fastfood restaurants.
It was easy to write about his tweets as they reflect my own appreciation of the culture I grew up in. It’s a way of looking at ourselves from a foreigner’s perspective and seeing how our culture was nurtured, cultivated, and encouraged by those who had the privilege of passing through our country.
The day I spent with Ambassador Koshikawa was filled only with good memories of his calm demeanor as he cooked his own version of the sinigang, even picking up the kamias from his own backyard and making me try one of his fresh picks.
He knew what he was doing and was adept in the kitchen. He certainly knew how to cook the dish so the invitation was not merely to show off his skills in the kitchen.
All these he did in his casual barong, a personal preference of the ambassador who, during the same meeting, told me he wore the traditional Filipino suit “80 to 90 percent” of the time, including when he hosted the Japanese congressional delegation and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Manila.
Sure, he managed to put on a suit-and-tie for the prime minister’s first day of visit, but the ambassador was back to his usual barong tagalog on the second day of accompanying the esteemed Japanese official.
There is something about Ambassador Koshikawa’s warmth that exudes when he engages with the Filipino community. He is a people person; that shows in the way he remembers to check Filipino restaurants and our local products even when he was back home in Tokyo.
He is proud of his heritage and would regularly visit Japanese brands here in Manila, but he’s also attuned to what his Filipino followers want and would casually feature dried mangoes and other Pinoy delicacies in his posts.
It is rare for media personalities to admire the people they meet on the job since serious issues are always at the core of these interviews. But the ambassador has given me a glimpse into the lighter side of diplomacy.
I wish him the best of luck in his next tour of duty and I will cherish the Japanese cookbook he so carefully gifted me with.
I hope that as he ends his diplomatic mission, he can start preparing his itinerary and visit the Philippines again, not officially but as a tourist who wants to reminisce about his experiences here.