Why New Zealand?
“I wanted to broaden
my horizons.”
It was as simple as that.
I wanted to see
another country.
Back then,
more than anything,
I just wanted
to get out of Japan.
5
New Zealand was relatively
affordable
compared with other
English-speaking countries.
I had saved some money,
but I figured that
as long as I could somehow
find a job,
I would be able to get by.
Before I left Japan,
I had been going to NOVA
to study English,
but once I actually got there,
my real-life English
was basically starting
from zero.
Luckily,
on my third day,
I managed to get a job
at a café
owned by an Indian owner.
But I honestly
couldn’t understand
what anyone was saying
at all...
I would just do
that very Japanese thing
of saying,
“Yes, yes,”
while my actual actions
didn’t match
what they had asked me
to do at all.
6
Still very much a beginner,
not even quite a pastry chef
in training yet,
I spent the next year
working part-time.
Then,
when I was 21,
I used a working holiday visa
and went to New Zealand.
4
