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    My Name is Cathelyn Van Der Land, and I grew up in New Jersey in a Filipino/ Dutch/ American household. I went to a high school with a culinary program in which I was exposed to some basic culinary knowledge. From there, I grew my interest in culinary arts. My high school program taught culinary, business, and baking concepts. I graduated in 2019 and started at the Culinary Institute of America in Fall 2019. I grew up eating Asian cuisine and have always been interested in the cuisine and culture of Asia. One of the main reasons for attending CIA was due to the Asian Concentration. I personally love traveling and food, so spending a semester abroad and being immersed in the cuisine seemed like a win-win situation. Due to the cancelation I was told to switch my concentration, therefore I am now in the Japanese concentration. I was deeply interested in Japanese culture during my sophomore year of high school. I have gone through many different classes during my years at the CIA, these include; fish ID, meat ID, A la Carte, HVP, Cuisine classes( Asia's, Mediterranean, and Americas). The semester before this one I had class in Bounty which is one of our on campus restaurants. Through this class we spent time in the Back of the house and front of the house serving real visitors. I feel like these classes were very helpful, and I am glad for the knowledge and skills I have gain. 

    My dream used to be  to work in an asian restaurant in New York City, but my interest for Japanese cuisine recently rekindled. Hence, my dream evolved to move to Japan and open my own place. But this dream is possibly far in the future.  The process of moving to the other side of the world is a big decision, therefore the dream to  work in New York City is most likely more realistic. Especially financially it is a big decision. If I decide to stay, I want to gain experience in either a Japanese or Korean restaurant in New York City after graduation.