Chapter 5: Saw it! I saw it, too!

Author's Thumbnail — Laura Honda-Hasegawa

Translated by: Minoru Nishida

Published Aug. 17, 2011 3 comments

Saw it! I saw it, too!

Saw it. Of course, I saw it, too.
My heart skipped a beat the moment they met.
Like in a dream, taken to a place with gorgeous scenery.
Introduced to surprisingly beautiful words, and comforted by a beautiful melody.
Tears filled my eyes.
It made me remember how wonderful friendship is. It made me miss people more than usual.

I, too, fell in love at first sight—with Jun-Sang!

Bingo! Yes, that’s it.
It’s said that “Winter Sonata (Fuyu no sonata)”, a message of love from Korea, has been seen by several people throughout the Nikkei community.

In 2005, upon my return from Japan, my childhood friend told me that there was a drama series that she “couldn’t stop crying while watching,” but I didn’t show much interest at the time.

A friend from Japan said she would send me the DVD, but I politely declined the offer.
I love movies and dramas. But that doesn’t necessarily mean I like storylines that would make me cry…

One day, after many months had passed, my friend called to tell me, “I sent you a present since I can’t go over to see you.”
The gift was a DVD of “Winter Sonata”.

Since it was the end of the year, the day I started watching was three days after Christmas. Ready, set, go! Here comes the beginning of Jun-Sang and Yujin’s love story!

By the time the New Year’s countdown began, I was completely carried away in the story—“Jun-Sang, please stay alive!”
Two days later, a happy ending!

I immediately started asking around for reviews from others who had seen it.

“It was so good,” “I liked how it didn’t have excessive make-out scenes like they do in Brazilian dramas,” “Such a cute story,” “It was refreshing,” “Beautiful,” “Brimming with pure emotion,” “Pure,” “Felt warmer than Japanese dramas,” “An honest portrayal of feelings,” “I’ll always remember my first love,” “Jun-Sang is better looking that Tom Cruise.” Of course, I felt the same way about everything. There are many movies and drams that I’ve liked before, but I’ve never liked anything so completely, from start to finish, as much as I did with “Winter Sonata”.

Ever since, I’ve been repeatedly watching my favorite chapters—like “Irony Of Fate (Unmei no itazura)”, or “The End Of Winter (Fuyu no owari)”, among others.

I wonder if I’ll ever be able to “Graduate from Yong-sama”… (Maybe never…)

Brazil drama Korean dramas

About this series

My grandfather immigrated to Brazil from Japan about 100 years ago, and I was born in Brazil. That is why I strive to become a ‘bridge’ between Brazil and Japan. I treasure the ‘Japan’ rooted deep in my heart, and I want to keep that part of me protected in my homeland of Brazil. This series was composed with those feelings in mind. (“Bom Dia” is “Good morning” in Portuguese)

About the Author

Laura Honda-Hasegawa @laurahh

Born in São Paulo, Brazil in 1947. Worked in the field of education until 2009. Since then, she has dedicated herself exclusively to literature, writing essays, short stories and novels, all from a Nikkei point of view.

She grew up listening to Japanese children's stories told by her mother. As a teenager, she read the monthly issue of Shojo Kurabu, a youth magazine for girls imported from Japan. She watched almost all of Ozu's films, developing a great admiration for Japanese culture all her life.

Updated May 2023

Episode 47 (Part 1) "I want to go home, but I can't"

Episode 46: Who is Rihana in the painting?

Episode 45: I'm glad Fujiko is Japanese!