When I was at a crossroads in my life, I suddenly remembered my long-held desire to live abroad, a feeling I'd had since junior high school. I searched for an environment where I could study while working, and the destination I chose was Australia.

I chose massage school because it made it easier to balance school and part-time work, so at the time I never imagined I would make massage my profession.

However, once I started learning, I found it fascinating how the body relaxed through massage, and receiving massages felt good too, so I began to look forward to going to school itself.

My partner in class, with whom I practiced massage techniques, was a Thai woman who was already working in the Thai massage industry. One of my favorite instructors was also Thai, and looking back, I think my connection with Thailand began around this time.

After obtaining my qualifications in Australia, I went to the Wat Pho Massage School in Bangkok, where my favorite instructor first studied, to learn Thai traditional massage.

After returning to Japan, I wanted to put what I had learned into practice, so I started working at a massage salon. While gaining experience in Thai massage and aromatherapy oil treatments, I also learned foot reflexology and deep tissue massage from the basics at that salon.

My seniors and colleagues were very kind, and whenever we had a free moment, we'd start practicing together. We were in an environment where we could teach each other anything we didn't understand. I enjoyed both the treatments and the time I spent working with everyone, and little by little, the feeling that I wanted to continue this job grew within me. Looking back, if my first workplace hadn't had that kind of environment, I might not have continued this long.