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Happy New Year of 2025!
Happy New Year!
On New Year’s Eve, after finishing work, I focused on making a costume for my daughter’s performance. I didn’t want to carry over tasks I’m not good at into the new year, so I pushed through and managed to finish it. That night, my son stayed up late for the first time, so we got to celebrate the countdown together.
On New Year’s morning, as per our annual tradition, I watched the televised broadcast of the Diamond Fuji. Seeing it gave me a sense of relief and peace.
After breakfast with my family, I took our beloved dogs, Mario and Luigi, for a walk. We also stopped by the local shrine to pray for everyone’s health in the year ahead.
Later, my husband surprised us with tickets to the Tokyo Skytree observation deck. We took the Arakawa Line (Tokyo Sakura Tram) to get there.
Seeing Mt. Fuji in person after watching it on TV earlier felt a bit surreal, but it also gave me a deep sense of joy, as though the mountain has always been watching over us.
And so, 2025 has begun!
This year, I plan to focus even more on holding cooking classes at my home kitchen studio, while strengthening my efforts to share information about Japanese food culture and lifestyle through social media and blog writing. I’m excited and nervous to see what kind of changes will unfold!
Finally, I would like to extend my New Year’s greetings to you and your loved ones. May 2025 be a year filled with happiness, health, wealth, peace, and success.
Warmest regards,
YUCa
Hello from Tokyo (December 2024)
The year 2024 is coming to an end, and YJC is entering its busiest season of the year.
We will be taking a break only on New Year’s Day and January 2nd, but other than that, we will continue sharing Japanese home cooking every day, including weekends!
Despite the hustle and bustle, I’ve unfortunately strained my voice. Over the past week, I’ve been conducting classes with a whispery and husky voice. (To all those who attended, I truly apologize!)
Thankfully, my voice has started to recover over the past few days. I urge everyone to take care of themselves—watch out for chills around your neck, wrists, and ankles, and be mindful of dryness while sleeping!
Reflecting on this year, it’s been a time filled with exciting challenges and new beginnings.
– I started training new instructors, building on 12 years of experience in the cooking class business.
– I launched a premium Japanese tea brand based on the theme of “Tea Travels,” which included trips to Kagoshima, Kyoto and Kochi and participating in food events.
– I made the big decision to incorporate my sole proprietorship and, somewhat unexpectedly, became a CEO!
Next year, I aim to continue enjoying my cooking classes while collaborating with more companies and talented creators to promote Japanese food culture and lifestyle.
Here’s to a healthy and creative year ahead for all of us!
Lots of love (愛) from Tokyo!
YUCa
Season’s Greetings from Tokyo!
Maybe it’s the end-of-year fatigue, but my voice has become hoarse.
However, with the support of my family, I’m managing to teach cooking.
I’ve recovered enough to be somewhat understandable, but I still have a husky voice.
I apologize to those who attended my cooking class over the past few days for any inconvenience…
Health comes first, after all.
Wishing you a wonderful Christmas!
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Nagomi Inc.
In October 2024, we established a new company, Nagomi Inc. (和株式会社). The name “和” (Nagomi) not only refers to Japanese style or ways of doing things, but also symbolizes harmony and reconciliation.
Through this new company, we will continue to focus on Japanese culinary education, particularly through cooking classes centered on washoku (和食, Japanese cuisine). In addition, we will promote the charm of Japan’s local regions through YUCa’s Tea, which connects tea and travel, and introduce Japanese lifestyle through our retail business, YUCa’s Choice.
By combining these efforts, we aim to spread the beauty of Japan, its food culture, and lifestyle both domestically and internationally, while creating a world of “Nagomi”(和).
We sincerely ask for your continued support and encouragement as we move forward with this new venture!
2024年10月、新しく株式会社を設立しました。会社の名前は、和株式会社（Nagomi Inc.）です。「和」は、日本式や日本流という意味のほか、調和や融和などを表します。新会社では、これまで通り料理教室を通じた和食の教育事業を中心に、お茶と旅を通じて日本の地方の魅力を紹介するYUCa’s Tea、日本のライフスタイルを紹介するYUCa’s Choiceでの物販事業、これらを融合しながら日本の魅力や食文化を国内外に広め、世界に「和」を創り上げていきます。
今後ともご支援と応援をどうぞよろしくお願いします。
Company Name: Nagomi Inc. 和（なごみ）株式会社
Date of establishment: Oct 2024
Board members: YUCa (CEO), Masashi Togami (CMO)
Web: https://yjc.tokyo/nagomi
Hello from Tokyo (November 2024)
November has arrived! Typically, this would be the time when people wear jackets even during the day, but although it’s cold in the mornings and evenings, the days have remained warm enough to get by with just long sleeves. How’s the weather in your area?
Looking back a bit, October was unusually eventful. In the first half of the month, I got sick for the first time in a while, which left me with a husky voice. Later in the month, my daughter and I both celebrated our birthdays, so we enjoyed quite a bit of cake! A few days afterward, we took part in a Halloween parade organized by my son’s elementary school and the Arakawa Ward.
And last but not least, I had a major change in my life—I’ve become the CEO! Over the past few years, I had been carefully considering the timing to incorporate my business as the cooking class industry has gradually recovered post-COVID.
I plan to post more about the new company at a later date.
Let’s all stay healthy and enjoy November!
YUCa
YJC Hand towels
The hand towels for my cooking class are finally ready. Until now, we had been using store-bought towels, but I wanted something with a unified look, so I decided to create my own this time. The colors are pink, brown, yellow, and blue. Each towel has a ‘YUCa’s Japanese Cooking’ logo in the corner. They turned out really cute, and I’m very satisfied with them. Please feel free to pick your favorite color when you visit the class. What color do you like?
YJC Globe
Time for Repairs! Mr.YJC (@msstgm) recently updated the YJC globe for the first time in a while. Our goal is to update it every six months, but we’re content if we can manage it once a year without overburdening ourselves. We spray the pre-made pins in YJC’s signature magenta color, let them dry for a while, and then attach them to the globe. In recent years, we’ve been fortunate to have more visitors from rare countries. It seems like Mr.YJC’s work will increase, but I secretly look forward to the day when the entire globe is covered in magenta.
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Hello from Tokyo (October 2024)
October has come! 🍂 Finally, it has started to feel cool in the mornings and evenings in Tokyo. This is the most comfortable time of year, and in Japan, there are various names for autumn. For example, there’s “sports autumn,” “reading autumn,” and “appetite autumn”! I find myself in “appetite autumn” all year round, but how about everyone else?
This month is packed with events like changing clothes for the season, sports days, field trips, Halloween, and my daughter’s and my birthdays, so I want to be mindful of my health every day.
Recently, I’ve been organizing the photos and videos I collected during summer vacation into themed reels and posting them on my blog. I hope you’re all enjoying them—I’d be thrilled if you are!
I plan to introduce various information about Japanese food in the future, so if you have any requests, I’d love to hear from you!
Let’s have a fruitful October, just like autumn! 🍂🍠🌰
YUCa
Hello from Tokyo (September 2024)
Summer vacation has ended, and the second semester has begun at Japanese schools. My son, who developed a habit of staying up late during the vacation, now has to wake up an hour earlier than usual, so it will take some time for him to get used to it. Despite this, our children are busy reuniting with their friends after a long break, sharing what they did during the vacation, and playing together.
As for me, I was busy preparing the children’s lunch boxes on weekday mornings, but with school and kindergarten meal services resuming this month, I am starting to feel a bit more relaxed in the mornings.
This month, since the cooking class bookings are quite relaxed, I plan to focus on supporting instructors who are looking to start cooking classes for foreigners, preparing for the launch of the YUCa’s Tea brand site, and writing blog posts about places I visited with my family.
Wishing you a wonderful month ahead!
YUCa
Hello from Tokyo (August 204)
It’s hot and humid from morning here in Tokyo. I’m staying hydrated, keeping up my iron levels, and getting good sleep!
Everyone, be careful not to get summer fatigue! Have a wonderful August!!! YUCa
