This one should come easy. I mean, Rizal Park is in honor of the Philippines’ national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal, and we’ve studied about him and his life since elementary. So, writing about this Philippine landmark should be easy.
I’ve driven by the park countless times, but I never got the chance to check the place. The most I could do was snap this photo. Maybe this is the problem of being immersed in a place too long. One ceases to appreciate things that others travel miles just to see.
Anyway, Rizal Park is the shrine of the Philippines’ national hero, Dr. Jose Rizal. It’s formerly called Luneta Park. During the time with the Philippines was still a colony of Spain, it was called Bagumbayan (which is short for Bagong Bayan, or New Town). On 30 December 1896, Jose Rizal was executed at Bagumbayan. Death through a firing squad, for his “subversive” ideas. Reminds of a conversation in a movie about someone’s terrorist being somebody else’s hero.
Rizal Park is across the Manila Hotel. It’s an open public park, so you could come anytime, for free of course. It’s location was discussed in our previous post on the Manila Ocean Park, which is just a few meters away from Rizal Park.
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#1 by krzyztoff on February 28, 2009 - 5:00 am
Here’s a trivia on Luneta complex that only I recently read from the website http://www.pangulo.ph, which is associated with Manuel L. Quezon III.
“At the same time, the date for the inauguration of presidents under the Third Republic was a symbolic one –Rizal Day, December 30. Presidents being inaugurated at the Quirino Grandstand could thus look out on a historic vista: the monument of the nation hero, on whose death anniversary presidents took their oath of office, and the Filipino flag, commemorating the proclamation of freedom in 1898 and its restoration in 1946.”
Makes you think why presidents of recent years have not been taking their oath of office very seriously.