Hitomi was born in Nagano Prefecture, and lived in Tokyo and other parts of Japan before coming back to Nagano to become a tour guide. During the Winter Olympic Games in Nagano in 1998, she worked as a volunteer interpreter in English at the Olympic Village.
Hitomi majored law at a university following her father’s advice, however, she found her love was in foreign languages and became a teacher of English. After further developing her English skills, she chose a career of English speaking tour guide.
Now Hitomi works in Nagano and the central parts of Japan, and loves showing her guests places with historical significance and beautiful nature. When not working, she enjoys walking in a forest in summer and skiing in winter. The great views in the national parks all around Japan especially from the islands off the coast are her favorite parts of the country. There are more than 6,500 islands in Japan, and Hitomi wonders how many of them she can visit in her lifetime.
In her spare time, Hitomi creates Tanka poems, a Japanese traditional style short poem. She is also a dedicated tea ceremony practitioner and regularly takes lessons wearing a kimono, and thinking about a perfect kimono and sash combination is fun for her. Cooking and reading are also her favourite pastime.