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Here's how Maria Ozawa and Chef Jose Sarasola's love story began
Maria Ozawa and Chef Jose Sarasola celebrated their fourth anniversary together on Monday.
The two shared how their love story began in a "Tunay Na Buhay" episode just in time for Valentine's Day.
"She actually dropped by my bar with a common friend and then the first time she came to my bar, of course I knew who she was," the chef said. "I didn't wanna act starstruck."
"I tried to be, like, cool and relaxed. I didn't really try to join their table too much," he said.
According to Maria, when she first saw Jose, she thought, "I was like, wow, who's this macho guy?"
The former adult star also said that in Japan, they didn't have the culture of "ligaw" so for a while she was confused with what Jose was doing.
"I was the one telling Jose [that] in Japan, we don't have courting. If we date two, three times we're like a couple," Maria said. "I was telling him, 'So what are we? Are we dating, are we friends? What's this courting stuff that you're doing?'"
"So he explained it to me and I think after a few months, less than a year, we decided to be a couple," she said.
Jose also said that what really worked for them was the fact that he didn't treat her like she was an international star.
"I didn't treat her as Maria Ozawa, the international star. I treated her like Maria Ozawa, the person who she really is inside," Jose said.
Now, the couple are in a long-distance relationship as Maria stays in Japan, her home country.
As they celebrate their fourth anniversary apart, Maria said, "I'm sure this is your first time going out with someone for four years and I'm happy it's me. I really miss you. I hope I can see you very, very soon. Sana this year." —Kaela Malig/MGP, GMA News
