Kumiko Hatori

Giving Something Back

Name: Kumiko Hatori
Born: Tokyo
Lived in Scotland: 4½ years

Kumiko Hatori has lived all over the world. Five years ago she decided it was time to finally settle down in one place. She chose Scotland.

“I’ve lived in Tokyo, London and New York,” Kumiko explains. “I know what life is like in a big, crowded city. I was really ready for something nicer, to live in a smaller, quieter place, where the people are friendly and also where I could do something; work for something good.”

Kumiko laughs. “You could say I spent the first forty years of my life doing things for myself. Now I want to spend the next forty doing something useful.”

True to her word, Kumiko’s new life in Scotland is filled with an impressive range of creative and community activities.

“I’m in close contact with the Japanese consulate in Edinburgh and they often call on me to help people. You know, maybe a young Japanese mother contacts them. I can help her learn about the Scottish community and maybe lead her through her small problems.

“I also act as an interpreter for the NHS, businesses and the police.”

It doesn’t stop there. Kumiko set up the Japanese Association in Glasgow, which now involves over 100 people.

“We have connections with lots of local communities and we’re planning all kinds of activities. In fact, I should really rename it the Japanese Association in Scotland because we have people in Edinburgh and Stirling as well as Glasgow!

“One of our first projects was working with the Helensburgh Blossom Festival.”

Festivals have been in held in Japan for thousands of years to celebrate the beauty of spring blossom. The Helensburgh Blossom Festival gave Scots the opportunity to do the same, and to learn about Japanese culture.

“The festival took place at the end of April. The weather was beautiful, all the blossom was out. There were horse-drawn rides round the town, we organised a tea making ceremony and sushi and origami demonstrations. There were Japanese folk dancers. The weekend was such a success that the organisers are going to do it every year.”

Kumiko clearly loves sharing her Japanese culture with her new community.

“I teach sushi-making to mostly Scottish people who love food. They’re brave people! A few years ago, raw fish was pretty unusual in Scotland. I’m very happy to teach these skills. It doesn’t have to be super-duper, but everything we produce is so fresh – it’s always better than a restaurant.

“The classes are really popular. I’ve thought about doing a proper restaurant but I don’t want to end up like a chef in an army tent!” Kumiko starts to laugh. “I don’t want to be in a restaurant kitchen screaming at people!

“Classes at my home are calming and therapeutic, and people get the chance to learn about other aspects of Japanese culture, like poetry, language and art.”

It’s not surprising that visitors to Kumiko’s Glasgow home find the experience uplifting.

When she and her husband, Duich McKay, moved to Scotland the couple worked with architects to completely transform the interior of their Victorian tenement flat. Now it’s a model of modern, minimalist design and plays host to music recitals, film nights, sushi-cooking, Japanese language classes and much more besides.

Recently a chef from Glasgow’s organic deli and café, Grassroots, taught Kumiko and friends from the Japanese Association how to cook traditional Scottish food.

“It was wonderful,” Kumiko exclaims. “Tracy showed us how to make mince and tatties, how to cook with wonderful Scottish fish and meat. We had so much fun.

“When we designed it, Duich and I didn’t anticipate how multi-purpose the living room would become. But we live a very creative life and a lot of that happens in this space. We are very happy here and every moment I’m happy is very important.

“It’s funny. I always thought I would live in Japan again at some point in my life because I love my culture. But I spent two weeks there in May and really, I got so fed up. It was so crowded and some of the things I love most are being lost.

“When I got back to Scotland I thought ‘what a wonderful place’! So much space, so much unspoiled nature. Now I think I don’t need to go back to Japan to get the things I miss. I can find those qualities here, in Scotland.”

Related Information

• Find out more about Kumiko’s sushi-making lessons
• Sunday Herald feature on Kumiko and Duich’s architect-designed apartment
• Helensburgh Blossom Festival
• Grassroots whole food supermarket, café and deli
• A Japanese visitor’s guide to Scotland
• An article on the links between Japan and Scotland
• Download this document about Scotland’s links with Japan (in Japanese)
• Consulate General of Japan in Edinburgh
• Embassy of Japan in the UK
• Japan Society of Scotland
• The Glasgow Japanese Language Meet-Up Group
• Find out more about Glasgow