Pinay Cinderella in Japan urges countrymen to change Japanese perception of Pinoys

As a former club entertainer, Abby Watabe didn't know that she'll ever be in the position to turn around the Japanese perception of Filipinos when she entered their country as an OFW in 2005.

Now, however, with her Japanese husband, Abby manages Karaoke Kan, a chain of luxury karaoke bars in Japan with internet cafes, showers, and laundromats for on-the-go salarymen.

This Cinderella story of a woman who had to scrounge garbage for food in her hometown in Tarlac was not even supposed to happen. Abby worked at a club in Japan with only the intention of feeding her family in mind, but a Japanese businessman took interest in her during their chance encounters in an elevator.

Soon enough, the businessman became a frequent visitor of the club she was working at, and eventually asked her to quit work to study at a Japanese school.

In a video posted on RTV Malacañang's YouTube site, Abby, a daughter of a labandera (washerwoman) and a carpenter, recalled that she initially doubted the man's intentions, and even doubted the wealth he claims to have. She said when he asked her to marry him, she told him to call her 10 times a day while she was on vacation.

Hubby's advice

The man did so, and when they got married, she was shocked to find that her husband's claim was true. Before they got into the thick of business though, he took her aside and gave her advice.

“Bakit hindi mo i-try na ibahin yung image ng Pinoy sa Japan?” Abby said, quoting her husband as telling her.

Abby added that her husband told her she has a chance of altering the common perception toward beautiful Filipinas working in Japanese bars.

“Noon, kapag ikaw nagpunta ng Japan, babae ka, may-itsura, ang tendency Japayuki or entertainer. Hindi lahat ng Filipino, ganyan ang trabaho,” she said.

Given a chance, she said, Filipinos will work hard to prove their worth.

Now, in the bars she manages, Filipinos get to experience the VIP treatment Abby feels everyday. She said it was due to her employees learning her lineage as she worked with them, somewhat conferred to her fellows when they visit branches of Karaoke Kan.

“Ang tao daw, 'wag mo siyang titingnan ng mababa kasi hindi habangbuhay mahirap siya,” Abby said, recalling another nugget of wisdom from her husband.

Help for Yolanda victims

She said this and her husband's firm belief in her countrymen moved him to place donation boxes for Typhoon Yolanda victims around their bars, to give more people opportunities to rise up on their own feet.

Abby's parents and siblings have also come a long way. Her mother now owns a laundromat while her father helps his wife run the business. She is also training her siblings to make something out of their skills, so the chances given to them would not be wasted.

And Abby also learned the real value of happiness.

“Akala ko 'yung happiness ko is material things, mga Hermes, mga bags. Pero kasi once 'yun nagkaroon ka, parang temporary lang yung happiness. Pero yung tumulong ka sa kapwa mo, 'yung joy ko iba,” she said. — KBK, GMA News