Japan man, 77, gives Swiss woman photo they took together 55 years after Osaka Expo encounter
Elderly man who felt ‘admiration not love’ at first sight more than half a century ago renews friendship with 81-year-old woman
A 77-year-old man has renewed his friendship with an 81-year-old Swiss woman whom he met at the 1970 Osaka Expo thanks to Swiss staff at the same event this year, moving many people online.
Tatsuhiko Yamamoto was 22 when he visited the first World Expo held in Osaka, Japan, in 1970, and met Marlies, a female member of staff at the Swiss Pavilion.
He was taking a photograph of the then popular pavilion known as “Tree of Light” when Marlies approached him and invited him to take a picture together.
Yamamoto promised her he would print the photograph and bring it to her on another day, but she was off on the day he visited again and they had never met since then.
Yamamoto was unable to get over the encounter.
He said it was not love, but “something like admiration”. He even clearly remembered his version of the woman’s name, Maris Müller.