Each year for the past nine years, Nagoya's foreign community has gathered in the city's Meijo Park district for an annual charity walk-a-thon. Thousands of people, from members of the local expatriate business community to players from the Chunichi Dragons to ordinary citizens, participate in a day of fun and exercise for a good cause.
"The walk-a-thon has really became the major event of the year for the Nagoya foreign community and many Japanese," says longtime Nagoya resident Carter Witt, who is helping to organize the event.
This year's event takes place May 21. Sponsored by the American Business Community Nagoya and the Nagoya International School, the 5-km walk-a-thon attracted about 1,500 people last year and Witt said that, with favorable weather, more than 2,000 are expected this year.