I came to Nagoya looking for the Filipino community.
Instead, I ended up doing this.
For almost 3 years, I’ve been learning Filipino culture in Cebu by following people, asking questions, and getting corrected along the way.
So when I started wondering where Filipinos in Nagoya actually gather, I thought I’d try the same thing.
I found a Filipino food booth.
I asked:
“Unsa pinaka-lami pagkaon?”
A Filipino woman who seemed to be the owner immediately replied:
“Bisaya no”
Then another guy looked at me and said:
“Oh, kabalo ka mo-Bisaya?”
So I just said:
“Yeah pero dili pako perfect.”
For a second, I thought—
Maybe I found them.
Then this happened.
I ended up joining a Filipino bamboo dance.
I asked one of the Filipina performers where she was from.
“From Kariya.”
Then they invited me to give it a try.
“Mahirap. Tudlo-i ko ha.”
They kindly said to me:
“Let’s do it together.”
Actually, I had done this bamboo dance in Cebu before.
But honestly…
I had already forgotten how to do it 😂
And somehow, standing there in Nagoya, trying to remember a Filipino dance with a Filipina from Kariya, felt strangely familiar.
But something was still missing.
I still didn’t know where the Filipino community actually gathers.
At the end, I wanted to talk with more people.
But I wasn’t allowed to.
So I left with more questions than answers.
Maybe that means I haven’t found the community yet.
Or maybe I’m just looking in the wrong place.
Either way…
the search continues.
Still Learning.
Still Exploring.
One Filipino community at a time.
I came here thinking a community was a place. A spot you could find on a map, if you asked the right people.
But the closest I got all day wasn't a place. It was a Bisaya reply to a Bisaya question, and Filipina dance performers who didn't seem to mind that I'd forgotten the steps.
It felt familiar. Almost like Cebu. That's the part I can't sort out.
If that feeling is what a community feels like, then I found it in a few minutes.
I came looking for a place where Filipinos in Nagoya gather. Instead, I got a Bisaya reply and a bamboo dance. Maybe that's something. I'm just not sure what to call it yet.
| Date | September 30, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Location | Oasis 21, Nagoya, Aichi |
| Event Type | Community Search / Filipino Food Booth and Bamboo Dance |
| Access Method | Approached the booth on my own; invited by the performers to join the dance |
| Food Featured | Filipino food booth (no specific dish covered) |
| Cost to Attend | Not recorded |
| Rarity | 🟨🟨⬜⬜⬜ — A short, familiar-feeling moment of Filipino culture in Nagoya |
| Bayanihan Index | 🟨🟨🟨⬜⬜ — Invited into the dance, but I couldn't keep talking with more people |
I still don't know whether I haven't found the Filipino community in Nagoya yet, or whether I'm just looking in the wrong place.
