Adrielly Souza
São Paulo, SP (Folhapress) – A crowded flight, a crying baby and tired passengers returning from travel. Amid the common scenario of a national air bridge, two passengers from Campo Grande lived at least unusual meeting. They traveled in the company of Princess Kako de Akishino, member of.
On board a commercial flight from Azul, in the economy class, from Campinas (SP) to the capital of Mato Grosso, businesswoman Taty Ota and civil servant Kelen Yumi did not know that they were on the same plane as Japanese royalty. Only after the landing did they understand that the young woman in a distinct -looking and discreet modes was, in fact, the princess on an official visit to Brazil.
“She’s very polite, it looks like a doll. It was in the same line as me. He greeted his head, right in Japanese style, and then fell asleep,” said Taty. She was traveling next to her father, architect Ikunari Ota, after a visit to her grandmother in São Paulo. “My father commented that in Japan no one comes close to her, no one plays. And here we were so close. It was surreal.”
Kelen Yumi, who returned from Chile with his family and embarked on the same flight after some connections, was also surprised. “I noticed a girl different from other passengers, with impeccable hairstyle and discreet clothes. I thought it was someone important, but I didn’t imagine it was the princess,” he recalls.
She also described a group of middle -aged men, all with formal costumes and insignia with flags from Brazil and Japan -was the official delegation.
Kako is the niece of the current emperor Naruhito, who has no men’s children and is therefore first successor to Brother Akishino, Kako’s father. In Japanese imperial tradition, women cannot inherit the throne.
According to Kelen, the flight commander warned shortly before the landing that a Japanese entourage was on board and would have priority in the landing. “My father was waiting for me at the airport and warned: it will take a while, there is a delegation from Japan down first. I didn’t even imagine that young woman was the princess,” he said. “I even played: I’ll try to mix to go down before.”
Confirmation only came the next day at work. “I commented to a colleague about the flight, and minutes later she sent me the news: ‘Kelen, the princess really was on her plane.’ I didn’t believe it. I was in shock.”
Along the way, Kako de Akishino maintained his discretion, but was still kind. According to Taty, she accepted a simple snack offered by the crew: dumpling, gelatin candy and flour cookie.
The princess has been on an official visit to Brazil since the 5th, celebrating the 130th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries. The passage to Campo Grande included a ceremony at the Nipo-Brazilian Sports and Cultural Association and a visit to the Visconde de Cairu School, which has served children of Japanese immigrants since 1918.
In addition to Sao Paulo, Curitiba and Campo Grande, Kako’s schedule includes tickets for Brasilia-where she has been since Wednesday (11)-Rio de Janeiro and Foz do Iguaçu. In all stops, meetings with representatives of the Japanese community and Brazilian authorities are scheduled.
The choice of a commercial flight instead of a private aircraft surprised a lot of people, but it is not uncommon in the Japanese monarchy. “My father even said, ‘This by private plane is more of a Brazilian politician.’ And it looks like he was right,” jokes Kelen.
In the end, what could be just another tiring route turned into a story to tell. “I will tell you for a long time: I was on the same flight as the princess of Japan, and she was there, eating a cupcake and listening to baby cry like any of us,” says Taty, still between amazement and enchantment.
