Two Years of Oh! Mama — So Many People to Thank

Today, October 1, Oh! Mama turns two.

Two years ago, I opened the doors of this small traditional Japanese house in Ikenoue, Tokyo. At the time, I had no idea where this little place would take me, or how many people I would meet along the way.

Looking back now, I realize something very clearly:

I have never really been doing this alone.

Over the past two years, I have had the pleasure of welcoming guests from 26 countries, including Japan, and from every inhabited continent.

Some guests came for calligraphy and tea ceremony. Some came to enjoy a quiet cup of tea. Some discovered Oh! Mama through a guide, a travel company, a hotel concierge, a YouTube video, social media, or a friend.

And sometimes, one guest brought another.

I have had guests who enjoyed their time at Oh! Mama so much that they recommended it to friends planning to visit Japan. Those friends, and sometimes their families, later came to see me too. One guest from Europe even contacted me because she wanted to give an Oh! Mama experience to a friend as a winter holiday gift. That conversation gave me the idea for gift cards, and before long, someone was actually visiting Oh! Mama with a gift card they had received for their birthday.

These small connections have been some of the most wonderful surprises of the past two years.

But behind every guest, there have been many people who helped make Oh! Mama possible.

My family has been there from the beginning. I have had countless conversations about the business with family members, relatives, and even the parents of my son’s friends. And whenever I came home saying, “Oh no, I’m going to go out of business!”—which happened rather often—they listened, encouraged me, and gave me practical advice.

My friends have done the same.

Nacchan, in particular, has supported me since the very beginning, helping with everything from setting up social media to ideas for events and new services, and improvements to my website. She has also introduced guests to Oh! Mama.

My fellow guides have been an especially important part of this journey. Local guide friends have introduced guests, travel companies, and hotel concierges to me, and have given me advice about my experiences. Friends I met through a guide training program have even continued to meet online every week to brush up our English.

That training was hosted by the U.S. Embassy, and one of the instructors later visited Japan with her children and came to experience Oh! Mama herself. It was a lovely reminder of how one connection can lead to another, sometimes across the world.

The people around me in Ikenoue have also become an important part of Oh! Mama’s story.

Local mothers have kindly tried new experiences and helped me test ideas for new services. Local elementary school children came to interview me. University students interviewed me and shared Oh! Mama on social media.

Neighbors have stopped by for tea. A neighbor once told me about the history of this area, including the fact that there used to be a farm nearby—something I had never known, even though I live here. The owner of the local taiyaki shop, Kakinoki, has visited Oh! Mama, and I have also become a customer of his shop.

I have even found myself chatting about English song lyrics while cleaning with the manager of the apartment building next door.

These may seem like small moments, but they have made me feel much more connected to the neighborhood than I ever expected.

There have also been so many people who have helped Oh! Mama grow beyond our little corner of Ikenoue.

People at Tokyo Startup Station and in Tokyo’s tourism and small-business programs have given me advice and opportunities. Through one Tokyo Metropolitan Government program, Alexander-san gave me detailed advice about running my business, which actually led to concrete results.

Travel companies, hotel concierges, guides around Japan, and people working in tourism have introduced Oh! Mama to travelers.

Creators and media people have also helped spread the word. Rachel Shizuka Anderson happened to discover Oh! Mama while covering Eteco Bread and kindly took the time to interview me as well. People have found Oh! Mama through ByFood’s YouTube channel, and others have connected with me through social media.

Liza Waldron visited with her husband for calligraphy and tea ceremony, then returned another day to experience Nihon Buyo, and shared those experiences with her audience. Roberto and Carlos have also helped introduce Eri’s sophisticated Interior Sho program.

And then there are the people who have helped shape what actually happens inside Oh! Mama.

Calligrapher Eri, Nihon Buyo master Nancy, and ikebana artist Tyutyu-an have each brought their own knowledge, skills, and passion to this little house.

Two calligraphers, my aunt and Akagi Shoka-sensei, have written calligraphy models for me.

Shiratori-sensei taught me how to dress someone in kimono patiently.

The local wagashi shops, Chikuoudou and Hosaka, continue to make the beautiful traditional sweets that accompany my tea experiences. I love that they use traditional ingredients and methods without unnecessary additives.

And there are people whose contributions are much more personal.

My tea ceremony senior gave me a kama, a traditional tea kettle, which I treasure and continue to use at Oh! Mama.

I use tea utensils that I inherited from my grandmother. They are nothing particularly valuable—just ordinary utensils for tea practice—but they carry memories that make them precious to me.

Some of the kimono I wear were passed down from my grandmother, my mother, my aunt, my tea teacher, and my tea ceremony seniors.

And even the house itself has a family story.

This was once my husband’s grandparents’ home. My husband’s grandfather had a wonderful sense of style, and much of the beautiful Japanese atmosphere of Oh! Mama comes from the house he created and cared for.

In fact, even the name Oh! Mama comes from this family.

The name is read Omama. My husband’s grandmother lived in this house. When her first grandchild—my husband—was born, she apparently did not like the idea of being called “grandmother,” because it sounded too old-fashioned to her. So the family began calling her Omama, meaning something like “Big Mama,” and the nickname stayed with the family.

When I was looking for a name for my little business, I wanted something that carried a piece of our family’s history, while also being easy for people from around the world to read and remember.

And so, Oh! Mama was born.

There are still so many people I have not mentioned here.

Greg Gorman used Oh! Mama for a portrait photography practice session and let me use photographs taken by his students. Takechi-san used the house for filming videos about video editing. Bankzitters used Oh! Mama as a venue and later invited me to their live show in Shimokitazawa, where I had a wonderfully energetic evening.

My university professor has visited and continues to introduce Oh! Mama to researchers from overseas.

Ebi-chan comes back every year for Kakizome, writing a New Year’s resolution at the beginning of the year.

There have been guest who simply happened to walk into the café and turned out to be well-known rakugo performer. There have been people I met through work, through friends, through the neighborhood, through social media, and through the most unexpected coincidences.

And, of course, there are all the guests who have simply come through the door.

Every person who has sat at the table, held a brush, whisked matcha, tasted a wagashi, asked a question, shared a story, or spent a quiet moment here has become part of Oh! Mama’s story.

When I started this little business, I never imagined that tea ceremony would become part of my work. I never imagined that the house where my husband’s grandparents lived would become a place where people from around the world would come to experience Japanese culture.

I certainly never imagined that, two years later, I would be able to say that Oh! Mama has welcomed people from 26 countries and from every inhabited continent.

But perhaps the number itself is not the most important thing.

What matters most to me is all the human connections behind that number.

A guide who introduced a guest.

A guest who introduced a friend.

A neighbor who shared a story about the town.

A teacher who shared a skill.

A family member who gave advice when I was worried.

A child who came to interview me.

A stranger who happened to find this little house.

A piece of furniture, a tea bowl, a kimono, or a tea kettle passed down from someone I love.

All these things have become part of Oh! Mama.

So, on this second anniversary, I simply want to say:

Thank you.

Thank you to my family and friends.

Thank you to my neighbors and everyone in the Ikenoue community.

Thank you to my fellow guides, travel professionals, teachers, creators, artists, local shopkeepers, and everyone who has offered advice, introductions, encouragement, or a helping hand.

And thank you, most of all, to the people who have traveled from near and far to visit Oh! Mama.

This little house is only two years old.

But it already carries so many stories.

I am deeply grateful to everyone who has helped make them part of its story.

Happy 2nd Anniversary, Oh! Mama.

And thank you for being part of the journey.