When she was 15 years old, Yuka joined a Maiko school in the Miyagawacho district of Kyoto. A Maiko is a apprentice Geisha in Western Japan.
As a teenager Yuka was living in a closed environment with strict rules, and that’s when she realised how much she loves freedom. Rarely, when she was going out from the school, she was fascinated to visit different coffee houses and to observe the coffee preparation.
Right before becoming a Geiko, which is how a Geisha is called in Western Japan, Yuka decided to change her path. Today she’s a barista, but her work is much more than just preparing the coffee. Yuka has transformed the coffee preparation into a real preforming art, adding to the process the moves, the grace and the outfits of a Geiko.