Q Beryl Roson Bencito 09/29/2020

LWW of Rizal TTh 5:30-7:00 PM Ytang, Dhong

Rizal’s Journey
A. First Journal of Rizal
Rizal was born in Calamba where he interacted with his very own parents and siblings,
Maestro Celestino, Maestro Lucas Padua, Leon Monroy and the Lieutenant of Guardia Civil. He also
wrote his first poem titled “To my Fellow Children.” He went to Manila to study at Ateneo and
graduated with a degree, Bachiller en Artes, with the highest academic honor. He also joined
organizations and confraternities. He also met the Dominican professors and Father Ramon Pablo
when he went to UST. He had a few literary works and made carvings as well. During his stay at UST,
he formed a secret society of Filipino students called Companerismo. He stayed in Singapore for 2 days
where he met Donata Lecha and he took his time with seeing some tourist spots. He also went to
Colombo, Naples, and Marseilles to appreciate them as countries. He went to Spain-Barcelona and saw
his schoolmates from Ateneo and that is where he wrote a few nationalistic articles. The first article
that he wrote abroad is “Amor Patrio.” He met the Paterno Brothers, Juan Luna, Gregorio Sanciano,
Felix Hidalgo, Graciano Lopez Jaena and many more people in Madrid. He passed his medical
examinations and Greek, Latin, and World History there as well, getting awarded by a degree Licentiate
in Medicine. By that time, he completed half of Noli Me Tangere and wrote a few articles, poem and
seech, joining the Circulo Hispano-Filipino as well. He also became a master mason in Lodge
Solidaridad. In Paris-Germany, he completed one-fourth of Noli Me Tangere and finished specializing
ophthalmology. In Berlin-Heidelberg, he became a member of chess club and perfected the techniques
of diagnosing eye ailments, writing a poem in the midst as well. He also went to Leipzig and Dresden
where he became a proofreader in a publishing company and had translating gigs. After that, he went
to Leitmeriz Bohemia where he met Professor Blumentritt and Viola, being considered as the greatest
man that was produced from the Malayan race. He visited the Prague, Vienna and went to Danube,
Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Baden with Viola and Blumentritt. He headed towards Switzerland to go to
Geneva and celebrated his 26 th birthday with Viola. They parted and Rizal went to Italy where he
visited Rome and Turin. He went to Milan and saw da Vinvi’s “The Last Supper.” He went to Florence,
Rome, Vatican before going back to Manila. He met Father Faura who asked about Noli and Rizal said
that he only wrote the truth. He went back to Calamba to see his family and established a medical
clinic and gym to introduce European sports to the youth.

Reflection:

I personally think that Rizal’s journey can inspire a lot of people, especially the youth and the students
who are still studying. I will take this in mind that even if our course or career path can be very difficult,
it is important that we won’t give up in the midst. We already went through the entrance of a difficult
career path, so it is better if we continue the journey. If we think about it, nothing is easy in life and we
have to work hard to succeed or attain our goals. We may have a difficult situation right now, but I am
sure that things will be better in the upcoming months. I will always remember that I can do it by
working and studying hard so I can graduate.

B. Second Journey of Rizal

Dr. Rizal’s second journey starts when he was 31 years old, and it took place at his hometown
Calamba, Laguna. During his second journey to his hometown, apart from his family, Governor-General
Emilio Terrero, Don Jose Taviel De Andrade, several Dominican Friars, Lt. General Valeriano Weyler, and
Mariano Herbosa are the people he interacted with. At the age of 27, Rizal is acknowledged as a medical
practitioner and man of letters, and as time passed by, he accomplished a poem called Himno al Trabajo
or Hymn to Labor. As another year passed by and at the age of 32, Dr. Rizal went to Hongkong and met
several people including Josephine Bracken who then became Rizal’s wife in the latter part of his life
story. Throughout his journey in Hongkong, it is said that Rizal was feeling depressed seeing how some
Filipinos are prohibited by the colonial government to go back to Manila. At the age of 33, Rizal went to
Macao and observed the British Colony and how they celebrate the Chinese New Year. Rizal also
observed the Dominican order and the graveyards. This is also the time where he met Jose Maria Basa
and Don Juan Francisco Lecaros. After a year, in his 34th year, Rizal went to Japan and met another set
of people including someone whom he had an intimate relationship with, Seiko Usui. During the time he
spent in Japan, Rizal was impressed with the beauty of the country that he visited several provinces. he
eventually learns to speak niponggo and the culture of Japan. It is undeniable that Rizal went to a lot of
places for the past 4 years, however, that does not just stop there because, at the age of 35, Rizal went
to America where he was quarantined with other passengers as 600 Chinese was inside the ship. After
that, he went to San Francisco at the age of 36. Rizal was awed by the natural beauty of the land as well
as the opportunities offered to the immigrants however he did not like the idea of valuing money over
someone’s life so, at the age of 37, Rizal went to New York which marks as his last destination for his
American Continent trip. There, He experienced a high standard of living and noticed how American
people contribute to the progress of their country.

Despite all the trips he had, Dr. Rizal continues to travel and with that, at the age of 38, he
visited London and met several people including Dr. Reinhold Rost and Gertrude Beckett. During his stay
in London, Rizal accomplished different things like a letter which is called “Letter to Young Women of
Malolos”, Articles for Trubner’s Record which is called “Specimen of Tagal Folklore” and “Two Eastern
Fables”, and Several Sculptures. In 1889, his 39th year which takes place in Paris. Rizal founded Kidlat
Club which is later on replaced by Indios Bravos and Sociedad Redencion de Los Malayos. during this
year also, Rizal Participated in Paris Exposition and International Art Competition, but unfortunately, he
did not win. Apart from that, during his time in Paris, Rizal Published his annotation of Morga’s Sucesos
and his essay called “Por Telefono”, “The Indolence of the Filipinos”, and “The Philippines A Century
Hence”. At the age of 40, Rizal Went to Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and met Suzane Jacoby and
Marie Jacoby. There he wrote New Truths, Cruelty, Differences, Inconsequences, Tears and Laughter,
and Ingratitude. After a couple of months, he left Brussels for Ghent and met a Pampangeno named Jose
Alejandrino and Edilberto Evangelista of Manila. Throughout the months he spent at Ghent, Rizal did not
receive any allowance because of the worsening problem in agriculture which led to starvation,
however, despite the problem, Rizal managed to publish El Filibusterismo through the help of Valentine.
So, in his 42nd year, Rizal went to Madrid and met several Filipino colleagues such as Marcelo H. Del
Pillar, Mariano Ponce, and many more. This is the time where he wrote a eulogy for Panganiban and
completed the manuscript of El Filibusterismo which is his second novel. After another couple of
months, Rizal left Madrid and went back to Hongkong again. That time, he met lots of people and have
some achievements like opening a medical clinic that established a name in curing eye disease, writing
articles like “Ang Mga Karapatan ng Tao” and “To My Countrymen”, letters like “To My Parents”,
“Brethren and Friends” and “To the Filipinos”. During this time, Rizal’s interest in politics was awakened
that he considered the possibility of his involvement in a revolutionary movement and with this, during
his 44th year, Rizal falls into the Spanish trap and is deported in Manila. This is also where a General sent
a cablegram to Gov. Despujol that the victim is in the trap. During this year, a secret case is filed against
Rizal and his followers for the anti-religious and anti-patriotic agitation. With that, as his second journey
ended, another one opens as La Liga Filipina is established.

Reflection:
Like what I said from the previous reflection, this travel log will inspire a lot of students when it comes to
their studies and career path. It will serve as a reminder that nothing is impossible if we do our best and
we don’t let problems hinder us from succeeding. I hope that students will get more motivated and that
includes me. I will always remember that problems are problems and we can always find solutions for
them.

C. Rizal Deported to Dapitan

It is undeniable that Dr. Jose Rizal has a versatile personality and that he excels in different
fields that are out of his main field which is medicine. Rizal is known for being our national hero but little
did we know, he is a Physician, Poet, Novelist, Essayist, Dramatist, Historian, Painter, Sculpture,
Architect, Musician, Linguist, Bibliophile, Translator, Educator, Economist, Surveyor, Engineer, Naturalist,
Archeologist, Agriculturist, Philologist, Inventor, Sportsman and lastly, a magician. Ophthalmology is
something that Rizal wants ever since and the reason behind this is his mother who is in a state of
blindness. In 1884, this dream was fulfilled when Rizal graduated at Universidad Central de Madrid and
earned a degree of Licentiate in Medicine at the age of 23. After achieving this milestone, Rizal went
back to his hometown Calamba and cured many patients there, however, not just people in Calamba
enjoyed this benefit but also those who live in Dapitan during the exile of Rizal. His name became
popular and reached Ireland as well as George Tauffer who brings his daughter to Dapitan. Later on,
George Tauffer’s daughter, Josephine Bracken became Rizal’s partner.

Jose Rizal is known in the world of Literature and one of the reasons behind this is his skills in
writing a poem, novel and etc. At the age of 8, Rizal discovered and shared his poetic side where he
wrote a poem called “Sa Aking Mga Kabata”. As time passed by, Rizal also starts writing novels and starts
publishing them. The two known novels of Rizal are Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo which
exposed the conditions of the Filipinos under abusive Spaniards. Despite publishing two novels, Rizal
had these novels in which he did not get to published and those are Makamisa and Dapitan and many
more. Aside from being a poet and novelist, Rizal is also an Essayist that contributes to his fame in terms
of literature. Some of his essays are “The Reminisces of a Student of Manila”, “Amor Patrio”, “On Travel
the Philippines within a Century”, “The Indolence of the Filipinos” and “Letter to the Young Women of
Malolos”. Rizal is also known as Dramatist and this made him won the first prize in a literary contest
during 1880 at the Lyceum de Manila. Jose Rizal is also a Historian and his great achievement is his
annotation of Morga’s Sucessos de las Islas Filipinas that was published in Mexico during 1609.

Rizal’s versatile personality does not stop there as he also excels in the field of Art. Rizal is also
known as Painter and his first success as one was during his childhood in Calamba. The story behind this
is when a religious banner was damaged, many people called young Rizal to repaint the damage since
people in their town knows how good he is at painting. One of his known paintings is the portrait of his
sister, Saturnina. Rizal is also an Architect; this is shown when he was planning to put up a Filipino
College in Hongkong. Rizal was the one who designed the building of the school he is planning as well as
his house in Dapitan. Apart from being a painter and architect, Rizal is also a Musician. He produced
several musical compositions like “La Deportacion”, “Leonor” and “El Canto del Prisoner”. Jose Rizal is
also a Linguist, he travels and had a contract with different people that provided him some education to
learn different languages making him learn 22 languages at the age of 35, this makes him a Translator as
well. It is obvious that Rizal is a Bibliophile since he loves books and considering the fact that he is
writing novels, essays, and poems. His love for books is also the reason why he collected 2000 books.

Rizal is an Economist as well, and he is very aware of the economic set-up of the Philippines
during his time that he feels bad that most businesses in our country are run by foreigners, particularly
Chinese. With this, he encouraged the people to form a cooperative. Rizal is also an Educator, and he
knows the value of education since his mother, Dona Teodora implanted it on him ever since he was
young. During his time in Dapitan, Rizal put up a school that is small enough to accommodate enough
number of students. There, Rizal taught the young boys various cultural values of the Filipinos such as
“Kaayusan”, “Delicadeza” and “Palabra De Honor” as well as the 3R’s which are Reading, Writing,
Arithmetic, and Religion. Rizal Finished a Surveying course at the Ateneo de Manila while he is studying
at the University of Sto. Thomas. He is not granted the title as he is young at that time, at the age of 20,
he began practicing surveying. Rizal surveyed lots of lands but his most memorable achievement as a
surveyor was his proposed Borneo Colonization Project. It is unnoticeable but Rizal is also an Engineer
through the help of books that he reads though he did not formally study Engineering. This is shown
when he was in Dapitan and constructed a water system that supplied the whole town of Barangay
Talisay. Apart from that, Rizal also remodeled the town plaza using his own money that provides a
lighting system and coconut oil lamp in Dapitan.

Rizal is also a Naturalist. In Dapitan, Rizal gathered several species in which he studied and sent
to New York, with this some European Scientist named some species after him like Draco Rizali and
Apogenia Rizali. When he is at Dapitan, Rizal excavated the Lumanao Hill where he discovered different
relics that belongs to a Chinese merchant of the Sung Dynasty, making him an Archeologist. During his
time, Rizal organized the farmers into a cooperative named “Society of Dapitan Agriculturist” and
planted 6000 hemp plants and 1000 coconuts, and different variety of fruits. Rizal is also an inventor as
he invented a cigarette lighter called “Sulpukan” and a wooden machine that makes bricks. Despite
being focus on studies, Rizal is also good at sports, he is an expert at fencing, swimming, wrestling, and
rowing. He also loves playing yo-yo and chess. While he is in Europe, Rizal opened a gymnasium in
Calamba introducing European sports like boxing, fencing, and pistol shooting. Before having an interest
in sketching different pictures, he developed an interest in creating different shapes and forms through
the help of clay and wax, some of the things that he made are woodcarving of his father, the mother’s
revenge, and Josephine sleeping in bed. This gives him the title of being a Sculpture. Lastly, Rizal is a
Magician. These skills were developed during his younger years in Calamba where his sisters and friends
are amused of his magic tricks.

Reflection:
This just proves that even at a young age, Rizal was able to do whatever he can and gained a lot of skills
in different kinds of aspects and professions. It’s amazing how he was able to do that within the years
that he was still alive. This is a reminder that as we take one course, we shouldn’t think that we can’t do
anything and feel down about failures. It’s possible to succeed even as we go through a lot of hindrances
and failures. It’s part of the journey to encounter problems after all.