HONG KONG

February 20, 1888- returned to Hong Kong

on board the steamer Kui Kiang.
February 22, 1888- left Hong Kong for
Japan on board Oceanic, an American
steamer.
 JAPAN
• February 28, 1888- Rizal
"Land of Cherry
arrived at Blossoms
Yokohma. He registered at the Grand Hotel.
• February 29, 1888- He boarded at Tokyo
Hotel (March 2-7)
• April 13, 1888- Rizal left Yokohama for San
Francisco on board Belgic.
 HONG KONG
February 20, 1888- returned to Hong Kong on board the steamer Kui Kiang.

February 22, 1888- left Hong Kong for Japan on board Oceanic, an American

steamer.

• “Tokyo is more expensive than Paris. The walls

are built in cyclopean manner. The streets are large
and wide”.
• In there, he was visited by Juan Perez
Caballero, secretary of the Spanish legation and then
invited him to live at the Spanish legation.
 Reasons for accepting the invitation

1. He could economize his living expenses by

staying at the legation.
2. He had nothing to hide from the prying eyes
of the Spanish authorities.

•In Japan, he studied Japanese language,

Japanese drama (Kabuki) arts and judo
(Japanese arts of self defense.
Rizal’s Impression of Japan
1. The beauty of the country- its flowers, mountains, streams and
scenic panoramas.
2. The cleanliness, politeness and industry of the Japanese people.
3. The picturesque dress and simple charm of the Japanese women.
4. There were very few thieves in Japan so that the houses remained
open day and night and in the hotel room one could safely leave money
on the table.
5. Beggars were rarely seen in the city streets, unlike in Manila and
other cities.
One thing that he did not like in Japan
1. Popular mode of transportation by means of rickshaws drawn by
men.
 O-Sei-San
March 15, 1888- Rizal first saw O-Sei-
San walking past the gate on the Spanish
legation.
Description: “You have the color of
Camelia, its freshness, its elegance”.
Rizal’s age: 27
How it started: Rizal came to Tokyo
Pet Name: O-Sei-San
How it ended: Rizal was offered a
position at the Spanish legation during
that time. He then decided to leave Japan
and forget his romance which pained him
gravely because he truly loved O-Sei-
San.
Love Story:
When Rizal was in Tokyo a few days
after he had moved to the Azabu district
in 1888, he spotted a pretty Japanese girl
walking past the legion gate. He was
captured by the lady’s regal air and
charisma and endeavored to find ways to
meet her. The girl’s name was Seiko
Usui. She lived with her parents and often
took afternoon walks by the legation.
Rizal waited by the gate one afternoon
and introduced himself.
Rizal and Osei-San, as he fondly called
her, met almost daily. They toured the
beautiful city spots, enjoyed the scenery
ad visited the picturesque shrines. Rizal
was then a lonely young physician,
disillusioned by his frustrated romance
with Leonor Rivera and burdened by
soured hopes for justice in his country. O-
Sei-San provided the beautiful escape
that he deeply needed, and he saw in her
the qualities of his ideal woman. He was
her first love.
Because of his deep affection for her,
Rizal was almost tempted to settle down
in Japan. Conveniently enough, he was
also offered a good position at the
Spanish legation during that time. Rizal,
however, had set sights on other matters.
He decided to leave Japan and forget his
romance, which pained him gravely as
tested by an entry in his diary. His 45-day
sojourn in Japan was one of the happiest
in his life.
“Japan has enchanted me. The beautiful scenery, the
flowers, the trees, and the inhabitants – so peaceful,
so courteous, and so pleasant. O-Sei-San, Sayonara,
Sayonara! I have spent a happy golden month; I do
not know if I can have another one like that in all
my life. Love, money, friendship, appreciation,
honors –these have not been wanting.
To think that I am leaving this life for the uncertain,
the unknown. There I was offered an easy way to
live, beloved and esteemed…”

As if talking to Seiko, Rizal affectionately

addressed this part of his diary entry to his Japanese
sweetheart:
“To you I dedicate the final chapter of
these memoirs of my youth. No woman,
like you has ever loved me. No woman,
like you has ever sacrificed for me. Like
the flower of the chodji that falls from the
stem fresh and whole without falling
leaves or without withering –with poetry
still despite its fall – thus you fell.
Neither have you lost your purity nor
have the delicate petals of your innocence
faded – Sayonara, Sayonara!
You shall never return to know that I have
once more thought of you and that your
image lives in my memory; and
undoubtedly, I am always thinking of
you. Your name lives in the sight of my
lips, your image accompanies and
animates all my thoughts. When shall I
return to pass another divine afternoon
like that in the temple of Maguro? When
shall the sweet hours I spent with you
return? When shall I find them sweeter,
more tranquil, more pleasing? You the
color of the camellia, its freshness, its
elegance…
Ah! Last descendant of a noble family,
faithful to an unfortunate vengeance, you
are lovely like…everything has ended!
Sayonara, Sayonara!”
Onboard the steamer ‘Belgic’, Rizal left
Japan on April 13, 1888 never to see
Seiko again. In 1897, a year after Rizal’s
martyrdom, Seiko married Alfred
Charlton, British chemistry teacher of the
Peer’s School in Tokyo. Mr. Charlton
died on November 2, 1915, survived by
Seiko and their child Yuriko.
At the age of 80, Seiko died on May 1,
1947 and was buried in the tomb of her
husband at Zoshigawa Cemetery. Their
daughter Yuriko became the wife of a
certain Yoshiharu Takiguchi, son of a
Japanese senator.