Friday, November 9, 2012

When Jose met Rizal

Last September 29, my housemates composed of David, John Mart, Shiela and Jose went for a very random stroll at Rizal Park. It's not like it's our first to be in Manila but we have to admit that we still haven't been to this very historical landmark. 

Rizal Park, also known as Luneta has been a witness of stories which could now only be found in Philippine history books. It has been the site of some of the most significant moments of our country. To cite some, this place was where our national hero, Dr. José Protacio Rizal has been shot dead and this was also the place where independence from America was declared.

Okay, enough with some history as it may become way too boring to discuss all of them (I have to admit, I've slept in history class before). So yeah, we strolled our way to Luneta and it was overwhelming to revisit history. 


We started our "tour" capturing the ever famous Rizal monument which is being guarded 24/7. It was quite a push since there were so many tourists (Americans, Koreans, Japs) wanting to take a picture of this monument.



We also visited the area where Dr. Rizal was exactly shot dead and we were just in time for the show. There were plenty of kids during that time since I was guessing there was a field trip of some sort. A historian was there narrating the story of Rizal and how he fought for the country. The amazing part of the show was when the narrator had to say "Fuego!" and shots exploded from the guns of these huge statues mimicking the real assassination of the national hero.

     

And of course we didn't miss the opportunity to take some wacky pictures with these gigantic statues. It was the funnest part of the tour actually. It was the best time for Jose (our friend) to finally meet the other Jose (Rizal).

Going to Luneta was definitely fun. For tourists like me, here's how we got to this historical place:
  • From Pasig, take MRT 1 Southbound to Taft Ave Station
  • Transfer to LRT 1 bound for Monumento and drop off at United Nations Ave
  • Walk towards T.M. Kalaw
For more ways to arrive to Luneta CLICK HERE.

I hope you would enjoy and learn a lot about our history going to this place as much as I did. More historical places to visit soon!


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