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ЮГО-ВОСТОЧНАЯ АЗИЯ: АКТУАЛЬНЫЕ ПРОБЛЕМЫ РАЗВИТИЯ _Том I, № 1 (42), 2019_
© Daria Panarina
IOS RAS
MANILA - the CAPITAL and the VISION of the PHILIPPINES (Part 1.)
Working on a region, being a regionalist, moreover, researching a particular country means reading about practically everything concerning the aimed territory: history, politics, economy, social life, culture and much more. In case it is not just foreign but a remote and exotic country, the difference in culture, reality and mentality will be huge from what we are accustomed to see in our native land or even in close to us European states. That can be said about most of the Asian countries, which are not just different, they are more like another world, something so much unlike what we in mass are used to, that touching this world, getting to know it, meeting it face to face usually makes a big surprise at least.
Being a researcher and not just a tourist leads to the fact, that visiting the country you work on, turns out to be non-similar to just staying there for rest or fun, as far as looking at things around you includes not only getting impressions, but analyzing the data you gain. So, critical combines with emotional and there comes the result in the text, dedicated to give the reader an image of a country, for that matter, such as the Philippines.
Not to give the reader a wrong idea, it is not going to be a full image of the Philippines, but a kind of a sketch, the first view from a person who had been studying the country for 3 years before she first came to visit it and see with her own eyes. It is also worth mentioning that this paper will be more about the capital of the country - Manila - than anything else, as unfortunately I didn't have an opportunity to visit any other parts of the Philippines due to the lack of time and some climate circumstances.
All in all, I spent in Manila 8 full days and only 5 of them were fruitful in the matter of seeing the country and meeting people of different social classes - from taxi drivers and just people in the streets to professors and researchers in local universities. In other 3 days I also got a rather good idea of what happens when the typhoon comes even if not
exactly to Manila itself. First of all, it was about the airport, of course, flight delays and cancellations and things like that.
Ninoy Akino International Airport
Speaking of which, the very first impression on the country - any country - you get is an impression on the airport. And here I can't say I was positively impressed as this airport - the oldest, the biggest and the most crowded in the country is also officially1 one of the worst international airports in the world.
Arriving almost at midnight I was not really able to estimate the arrivals and think about the conveniences, still, from that point I remember two main things: first, navigation outside is quite complicated so that you do not really understand where to go if you want to get out and second, private cars (not taxis2) are not allowed close to the terminal, so if you are met by the Filipino people, which was my case, either they will get difficulty getting inside or you will have difficulty finding them.
As for the departures that I saw on my way back home, it's worth telling a separate story. First of all, it is kind of a shock that you can't get into the terminal without your ticket. Yes, just like that. As a passenger you have to show your ticket to the police guard at the entrance and only then he lets you in. So, it is where the first line and the first jam come to life. In the case you do not have a ticket for some reason and want to buy one in the airport itself, the same guard will very politely show you to the 'agencies' situated in the buildings which look like barracks. Inside you will see some workers sitting at the counts and not everyone of them has a computer or even a laptop. Also, there are some tourists, mostly Europeans, trying to get them tickets. At the entrance you are seen to your agent and he/she starts serving you in order to find you a convenient flight back home. In my case it basically meant that the agent called some other agent, got the information, wrote it down on a sheet of paper and then transmitted it to me. If I didn't like it, he called again (and it was not easy to get through) and everything repeated. In the end, after half an hour of such search, we both got tired and he took me in the service car to the agency he was calling. That was when I saw where were those ticket selling companies which are usually inside the terminal -they were all outside on the territory of the airport, not easily accessible (not on foot) and many of them were not working at all as far as it was Sunday. Finally, in the agency which at least had a normal air-conditioned office with all necessary equipment inside, I got the tickets I wanted. Another thing which turned out to be unpleasant in the case was
that paying by credit card was not possible for some reason (may be because of my bank being Russian) and getting the money in cash from ATM meant paying commission (250 peso for transaction). And though 250 peso is not a big sum of money, I was bewildered to find out that in the only working ATM at the territory of the airport you could take at a time not more than 10 000 peso. I needed 60 000, and of course each time I had to pay a commission. In the very end, I also had to pay quite an amount for the service car which took us there, waited and took us back to the terminal, which was not sentenced properly beforehand.
What I also need to say here to add to the description of the whole situation are a few words about the people. Not only in the airport, but everywhere, the Filipino people seem to be very friendly, polite and helpful, even sympathetic. Still, if it is about earning some more money from a foreigner, they won't let it go.
Getting the tickets and finally being inside of the terminal the first thing I saw was a hall with registration desks. In the same hall you could find some luggage packing service and practically that was all. No shops, almost no seats, just check in desks on the perimeter and long lines to them with quite a lot of people in them. And that was another thing that shocked me, as I have never seen such spaces in any of the international airports before. Further on lines to different services including passport control multiplied, and I can't say that these lines moved very quickly. Fortunately, I managed to get to my flight in time.
Makati District
I won't give any details about my schedule and how I spent the time in Manila, as the goal of this paper is different. Instead I would like to write a few words about some of the districts in Manila. There are all in all 17 districts which can be called towns, which comprise the Metro Manila conglomerate. I happened to visit 4 of them, namely: Makati, where I lived in the hotel, Quezon City, where I travelled by taxi to meet professors and researchers, Intramuros - the historical district of the capital and finally the Chinatown, where most of the huaqiao live and work and where most Chinese businesses are situated.
I shall start with the district I happened to live in. Makati is said to be the main business district in Manila and some part of it is really built over with skyscrapers and modern business centres and offices. This part is for the rich. However, there is also a part where ordinary people live, a part which is not so posh and expensive and not so safe for walking at night as locals say. Speaking about just that, there is a peculiarity, a rule
I first met in the Philippines - that is you need to return home by 10 p.m., especially if you are driving a car or any other big vehicle, as far as at 10 p.m. sharp the gates to separate barangays3 are closed. You are lucky if a small door is still open, thus at least you can get in if you are walking. Another thing, which is probably a general one for Asian cities - there are no numbers on the buildings, so it also makes navigation more complicated.
What is really amusing and surprising is the fact that even in such a district as Makati, those two parts - the rich and the poor - are actually all mixed up together. And going along the streets you can see first a skyscraper and then next to it a shack. It is true for all Manila, except for Intramuros only, as far as I can judge.
The following photo illustrate the aforementioned verbal description rather well. Most of the photographs were taken out of the car (taxi) window as walking around the city is not advisable. First, it is inconvenient - the pavements are narrow and dirty and in some places just non-existent. Second, walking during daylight is almost impossible and quite dangerous for your health because of the constant heat and humidity of the tropical climate. I tried walking at night (around 8 p.m.) after the sunset, and can say that the feeling was not much es around +31-32 degrees are constant throughout the year and the only thing that changes is humidity. September is also the very end of the typhoons period. So, probably, it also counts somehow in the feeling of the weather.
Quezon City
Quezon City is a district which gives place to a lot of universities and colleges, so it can be probably called the intellectual part of the city. The most well-known and the biggest ones are the University of the Philippines Diliman - the national university - and Ateneo de Manila University. Quezon City hosts a number of government offices, the most important of which are the Batasang Pambansa Complex (the seat of the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the Philippine Con-
The view from the hotel balcony in Makati
gress), and the Quezon City Reception House (the current seat of the Vice President of the Philippines)4.
It is interesting to mention that Quezon City is the largest city in terms of population and land area in Metro Manila, the National Capital Region of the Philippines. Once it used to be a capital instead of Manila and originally was founded by the second President of the Philippines Manuel L. Quezon and named after him. The city was proclaimed as a capital in 1948. However, since practically all government buildings are still in Manila, many functions of national government remained there. Quezon City held the status as the official capital until 19765 when a presidential decree was issued to designate Manila as the capital and Metro Manila as the seat of the government6.
Among the places which I personally visited in Quezon City were both above mentioned universities and Miriam College. The two universities are well-known in the Philippines and outside the country, at least among those who study the state. Thus, I will not elaborate on them. On the contrary, Miriam College is not so famous, although it is quite interesting, specifically being a women institution. There is what it says at the official website of the college itself: Miriam College is a premier women's Catholic educational institution founded by the Maryknoll Sisters of New York in 1926. It offers academic programs at the basic and tertiary levels at its main Quezon City campus. Its growing MC Nuvali branch in the province of Laguna currently offers basic education to boys and girls while its third campus in Porac, Pampanga is underway7. To better understand the ideals and teachings of the college I should say a few words about one of its lecturers, the person I met there and had a very fruitful talk with. It was Jasmin Nario-Galace, Ph.D., an Executive Director, Center for Peace Education, Miriam College8. As she studies peace her position on R. Duterte's policy and his war on drugs plan, being implemented in the country at the time was quite adamant: such policies are inhuman, unforgivable and a clear picture of dictatorship. To further prove such opinion it is enough to give here her citation on what is peace exactly: Peace is not just the absence of war; peace is the presence of justice where people live in a just and humane society; where they do not suffer from prejudice and discrimination, violence, poverty; and at the same time caring for the environment. This is not a new concept to most people. Peace is inclusive, and embraces and respects human rights and diversity9.
The area around the universities looks rather clean and Europeanlike for Manila. Universities' campus turns out to be spacious with lots
of buildings including dormitories. Yet, the system of getting on the territory was also news for me. At the gate you are met by security guards, very polite but strict, who first check if you have an appointment with the person from the university. Basically, it means that the guard calls the person you have agreed to meet with and if there is no answer, you are not let in. So, to get to the university it is highly advisable to send an e-mail and discuss all the details beforehand, especially in summer and early autumn as it is a period of business trips and sabbaticals10 for professors. And though it was not convenient, I cannot say that it was an unpleasant experience for me, as, speaking of the guards, I saw people doing their work well and being responsible.
Another shocking detail about the district right around the university area were the shacks or barracks. Or, frankly speaking, something that can be barely called even barracks. People live on a spacious territory fully build over with "houses" which stand lower than the street level, "houses" made of practically anything. There are no addresses here, no directions and no safety. This place has no name and is an eyesore for the universities, that initially once hired these people, mainly work migrants as builders, and now cannot get rid of them. The situation, as I was told, has been like that for years. Such contrast to the heart of intellectual resources and knowledge, clean and bright area, is from my point of view, another part of the contradictive mosaic which is Manila and adds well to its image. Unfortunately, I do not have any photos of this part of the capital, but in the Internet, you can find a great number of photographs from tourists as well as at official websites of the universities themselves.
Intramuros
Whereas Makati and Quezon City are rather new parts of the capital, Intramuros is the oldest and the most historical district of Manila, basically it is where the city started in the times of the Spanish colonizers, the ones who first began building cities in the Philippines and brought here Catholic religion, education and European values. Probably due to this fact Intramuros has a Spanish name11 (as many other places in the Philippines, actually) and looks much more like Europe than like Asia. It is by all means the most tourist part of Manila, despite the fact that sadly all original historical buildings from the Spanish era (including churches, governmental buildings, universities) were destroyed in the Battle of Manila during the World War II and the Japanese occupation. The only happy exception, which though have been damaged, still preserved till
our days in its original form is the San Agustin Church, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. That is why sightseeing in Intramuros, which is usually done with the guide in a carriage, includes a lot of places where you will see information stands with the photos of the buildings that used to stand at the place and some information about them. In most cases the buildings were not restored in their original form and typically there is something new standing in the same place12.
At the place where Intramuros starts there also is a stand with welcoming words and timetable: At the bottom of the stand there is a logo saying Intramuros Administration. The district is administered by the Intramuros Administration (IA), which was created through the Presidential Decree No. 1616 signed on April 10, 197913. IA is tasked to rebuild, redevelop, administer and preserve the remaining pre-war buildings, structures and fortifications of Intramuros. Each such stand has their logo.
One of the first sights you see in Intramuros is the Manila Cathedral, the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Manila, which was reconstructed in 1958. Other religious orders reconstructed their churches outside Intramuros after the war. It looks grey and massive, but there aren't many things inside. Still, one of the interesting items, found in the cathedral is a statue of St. Josemaria Escriva14, a priest, preacher and founder of Opus Dei15. Non-personally but through his Filipino apprentice he spread his Way in the Philippines and thus is worshiped in the country. Here is what he said about the Philippines: "What a wonderful country: the Philippines! You are the vanguard of Jesus Christ in the Orient. Your land shall be the channel to bring Christ to thousands of souls. You are a chosen people. I don't say this out of niceness, but rather because it is the truth, and a beautiful truth.16" The first Filipino members to meet Opus Dei when they were studying in Harvard, in the late 1950s: Jesus (Jess) Estanislao, Bernardo (Bernie) Villegas y Placido Mapa, Jr., came into contact with Opus Dei through a university residence in Boston, and asked for admission. In August of 1964 St. Josemaria appointed Fr. José Morales as the first Counsellor for the Philippines, a post he filled until the beginning of 1964, when he moved to
Pamplona to work as a professor of Theology. He was replaced by Fr. José Cremades17. Thus, Opus Dei spread in the Philippines and nowadays you can find St. Josemaria Escriva in churches with even a prayer to him given in text in two languages: English and Tagalog. The prayer goes as following: "O God, through the mediation of Mary our Mother, you granted your priest St. Josemaria countless graces, choosing him as a most faithful instrument to found Opus Dei, a way of sanctification in daily work and in the fulfillment of the Christian's ordinary duties. Grant that I too may learn to turn all the circumstances and events of my life into occasions of loving You and serving the Church, the Pope and all souls with joy and simplicity, lighting up the pathways of this earth with faith and love. Deign to grant me, through the intercession of St. Josemaria, the favor of... (make your request). Amen. Our Father, Hail
The statue of St. Josemaria Escriva de Balaguer in the Manila Cathedral. Was donated by Opus Dei, Manila Center. With the prayer to him underneath and some information about him in English. He was canonized as a saint by Pope John Paul II who declared him as "accounted among the great witnesses of Christianity "19.
Another, San Agustin Church, the only one original building preserved seems to be very popular among the Filipino people judging by the number of cars parked in
Apart from churches Intramuros is famous for its fortes and monuments, where among others the most politically interesting one represents a gallery of portraits. It is made of metal and is actually a good illustration of all Philippines presidents starting from the very first - Emilio Aguinaldo - and ending with the current one - Rodrigo Duterte. Every time a new president is elected, a new portrait appears in the "gallery" made in the same style as all the previous ones.
Philippine Presidents Gallery, Intramuros
As it was mentioned above, Intramuros served as a homeland for numerous universities and colleges including the oldest ones such as the University of Santo Tomas (1611), Colegio de San Juan de Letran (1620), Ateneo de Manila University (1859), Lyceum of the Philippines University and the Mapua Institute of Technology. The University of Santo Tomas transferred to a new campus at Sampaloc in 1927, and Ateneo left Intramuros for Loyola Heights, Quezon City (while still retaining "de Manila" in its name) in 1952. Still, currently Intramuros also gives place to some more modern educational institutions. And while their buildings look quite typical, what attracted my attention were the canteens for students situated not inside the main building, but outside. They resemble some kind of out-space food-court in a rather old building or buildings with small stalls selling different food and tables with chairs standing in a row under some shade-tents.
Among other sights - those to be but lost or new ones and present - there are preserved (actually restourated) the two forts which I would like to mention in this paper. They are Bastion de San Diego and another one, more well-known and more important - Fort Santiago.
The existence of the fort Bastion de San Diego started from Governor General Gómez Pérez Dasmariñas who integrated an older fort with cortina or curtain walls, built from 1591-1594. The bastion is a protruding structure with facing flanks built along the cortina. The purpose of its projection was to ensure a clearer view of the cortina for the artillery - in order for them to prepare against invaders. The bastion has two parts; face (projected outward) and flanks (connecting the face and the cortina, or the curtain wall). Several developments were added in the course of time such as addition of semi-circular structures at the base called orillons or little ears making the bastion resemble an ace-of-spades shape.
Baluarte (Bastion) de San Diego was built on the southwestern corner of Intramuros. It underwent several alterations. In 1609, a writing from Antonio de Morga states that the structure was only a tower within a much larger construction of the Fort Nuestra Señora de Guia. Jesuit priest Antonio Sedeño was the commissioned parish priest responsible for the construction of the Fort Nuestra Señora de Guia. Some of the amenities and facilities included within the fort were courtyard, cistern tank (water supply tank), lodging quarters, and workshops. However, the construction of the fort was always interrupted due to arising circumstances, thus, it was not finished20. Gardens and pergolas were added to make the structure more appealing to the visitors and more suitable for special events. The area is managed by the Intramuros Administration, an attached agency of the Department of Tourism. At the entrance to the Gardens and further to the Baluarte itself there is another stand explaining a few words about the history of the Bastion. It says: In the baluarte is the oldest stone fort in Manila. Built in 1586, it was called the Nuestra Señora de Guia. Designed by Jesuit priest Antonio Sedeno. Fell into disrepair and was renovated in 1593. Incorporated as part of the walls but later was abandoned due to its unstable foundations. New baluarte was constructed with orillons (curved corners) masking cannons on the
flanks. Destroyed during the British invasion in 1762. Repaired and renovated in 1764. American army ordinance section built on site during American occupation. Destroyed during World War II. Fort Nuestra Se-nora de Guia was excavated in 1980 and is now a major tourist attraction of the Walled City21.
Inside except for the garden and the excavated walls of the fort you can find some old cannons adding to the military image of the place. An interesting fact about the fort concerns the replica of the Statue of Liberty which turned out into a whole story. In January 1945 a campaign started in order to erect a Statue of Liberty replica in the Philippines. Several places were suggested as the site where the eight-foot bronze replica would be erected. In the end, the Boy Scouts of the Philippines
(BSP) erected the statue on the fort. As the icon of the United States, the replica of Lady Liberty would survive several attacks by student protesters in the 1960s. It remained standing until the early 1970s, when the BSP decided to transfer it to another place22.
Fort Santiago is by all means the most well-known among other attractions in Intramuros. It is a citadel first built by Spanish navigator and governor Miguel López de Legazpi for the new established city of Manila in the Philippines. Located at the mouth of the Pasig River it served as the premier defense fortress of the Spanish Government during their rule of the country. The fort is one of the most important historical sites in Manila. Several lives were lost in its prisons during the Spanish Empire and World War II. José Rizal, one of the Philippine national heroes, was imprisoned here before his execution in 1896. The Rizal Shrine museum displays memorabilia of the hero in their collection and the fort features, embedded onto the ground in bronze, his footsteps representing his final walk from his cell to the location of the actual execution. Today, the fort, its bastions, and the prison dungeons for criminals used by the Spanish officials, are part of a historical park which also includes the
Plaza Moriones and several ruins. José Rizal museum is full of the memory of him and gives a good image of him as a person and a thinker, a hero of his nation. Numerous details from his life, his personal things, his letters to his family from his imprisonment, citations from his works, rooms decorated in the same manner as the ones where he was at court and where he was really kept in fort Santiago - all these details make very true-to-life impression.
Fort Santiago
Among those things I would like to share with my readers the words from Rizal's last letter to his family. Here it is:
To my family,
I ask you for forgiveness for the pain I cause you, but some day I shall have to die and it is better that I die now in the plentitude of my conscience.
Dear parents and brothers: give thanks to God that I may preserve my tranquility before my death. I die resigned, hoping that with my death you will be left in peace. Ah! It is better to die than to live suffering. Console yourselves.
I enjoin you to forgive one another the little meanness of life and try to live united in peace and good harmony. Treat your old parents as you would like to be treated by your children later. Love them very much in my memory.
Bury me in the ground. Place a stone and a cross over it. My name, the date of my birth and of my death. Nothing more. If later you wish to surround my grave with a fence, you can do it. No anniversaries.
23
I prefer Paang Bundok .
Have pity on poor Josephine.
Such simple and at the same time such human words. Words of a real Man. And another text which also very well describes Rizal's feelings, particularly for his own country is a poem called "My Last Farewell". Here is an abstract:
Land that I love: farewell: O land the sun loves: Pearl in the sea of the Orient: Eden lost to your brood!
Gladly go I to present you this hapless hopeless life: Were it more brilliant: had it more freshness, more bloom : Still for you would I give it: would give it for your good!
On the field of battle, fighting with delirium, other give you their lives
without doubts, without gloom The site nought matters: cypress, laurel or lily: gibbet or open field: combat or cruel martyrdom are equal if demanded by country and home. I am to die when I see the heavens go vivid, announcing the day at last behind the dead night. If you need color - color to stain that dawn with: let spill my blood: scatter it in good hour: and drench in its gold one
beam of the newborn light24.
Jose Rizal monument The line of steps showing Jose Ri-
zal's way to his death From the other side of the fort, opposite to the entrance gate you get to go down to the Pasig river. It shows a great view of the other river bank...and also the poor state of the river itself. Unfortunately, it looks dirty, as dirty looks the city of Manila in general, when you are going along the streets. Still, on the surface of the river I found it incredulous to see a man on a kind of a raft. Later on, it turned out that this person was not just idling, as he was not there for any personal good. I was told that to somehow sail or swim in the river you need to have a permit and people who do usually work like that: probably gathering some rubbish or litter from the surface of the water, as far as can judge. It was a new thing for me, but I suppose it is a rather good idea.
The view on the opposite bank from fort Santiago (The end of the article in the next issue)
I Still the world's worst airport / by Erwin Tulfo. Manila Standard. April 23, 2019. URL: http://manilastandard.net/opinion/columns/point-of-impact-by-erwin-tulfo/293009/still-the-world-s-worst-airport.html
As for taxis which are rather numerous, locals do not advise to hire them as far as it is not safe and also expensive. It is not only about the taxis from/to the airport, but in general about all taxis in Manila.
3
A barangay is the smallest administrative item in the Philippines. In towns and cities, it is more like a quarter in a district, in rural areas it can be called a village.
4 History of Quezon City Public Library. November 21, 2006. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. URL:
https://web.archive.org/web/20150924083508/http://www.qcpubliclibrary.org/down loads/Full_History_Of_QC_Public_Library.pdf
5 Ibid.
6 Presidential Decree No 940, s. 1976. Official Gazette of the Philippines. Archived from the original on April 5, 2019. URL:
https://web.archive.org/web/20190405101954/https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1 976/05/29/presidential-decree-no-940-s-1976/
7
Mirriam College. About. URL: http://www.mc.edu.ph/About Dr. Galace is a Professor at the Department of International Studies. She has authored and co-authored publications on peace education, conflict resolution, arms control and women, peace and security. She is President of Pax Christi Pilipinas and Chair of the Catholic Educational Association of the Philippines' Justice and Peace Education Committee. She is also a Member of the Board of the Philippine Council for Global and Peace Education and currently leads the Peace Education Network. Internationally, she is in the Steering Board of the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders and the International Action Network on Small Arms (IANSA) Women's Network. She is in the International Advisory Council of IANSA. (ICAN) and is also in the Group of Experts of Forum Arms Trade as well as in the Global Funding Board of the Global Acceleration Instrument for Women, Peace and Security. URL: http://www.mc.edu.ph/people/jasmin_galace
9 Sophia Dianne C. Garcia. Amplifying Women's Voices Towards Sustainable Peace. Women CSO-Led Panel Discussion during the High-Level Meeting on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace, April 24-25 2018. URL: http://gnwp.org/wp-content/uploads/Sophia-Diane-Garcia_Sustaining-Peace-Speech.pdf (last visited: 14.05.2019).
10 A sabbatical is a period of time when college or university teachers are allowed to stop their usual work in order to study or travel, usually while continuing to be paid. Many professors use this time to do research work. URL:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/ru/%D1%81%D0%BB%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0% B0%D1%80%D1%8C/%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%B3%D0%BB%D0%B8%D0%B 9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9/sabbatical
II Meaning "within the walls".
12
You can check it here in the table "Structures before and after World War II". It shows what buildings once were present in Intramuros and what buildings are in
their place nowadays. URL:
https://en.wikipedia.Org/wiki/Intramuros#World_War_II_and_Japanese_occupation
13
Presidential Decree No. 1616, s. 1979. Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Office of the President Malacañang, Manila. URL:
http://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/1979/04/10/presidential-decree-no-1616-s-1979/
14 St. Josemaría Escrivá. URL:
http://www.escrivaworks.org/doc/josemaria_escriva.htm
15 Opus Dei
16 "On beginning in the Philippines," Crónica, June 1984, AGP, P01 // Cit. after: Opus Dei women in the Philippines - 50th Anniversary. Excerpts from "Diccionario de San Josemaría Escrivá": Philippines / Opus Dei Today. October 4, 2015. URL: https://opusdeitoday. org/2015/10/5 0th-anniversary-opus-dei-women-philippines/
17 Ibid.
18
Prayer to Saint Josemaría. URL: https://opusdei.org/en/document/prayer-to-saint-josemaria/
19 From the information below the statue.
20
Intramuros, in and around: An Interactive Guide. Jesuit Communications Foundation, Inc. 2003.
21
The text was directly retyped from the photo of the stand, taken personally by me
during my stay in Manila.
22
Baluarte de San Diego. URL: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baluarte_de_San_Diego
23
Paang Bundok literally means foot of the mountain. It is the place in the north of Manila where are the North Cemetery, a municipal cemetery, and the Chinese Cemetery. Rizal was buried, not in a humble place in Paang Bundok, as he wished but in the Cemetery of Paco. On 30 December 1912, the Commission on the Rizal Monument, created by virtue of Law No. 243, transferred his remains to the base of the monuments erected on the Luneta, very near to the place where he was shot. URL: http://ubdlibrary.wikidot.com/a-letter-to-his-parents
24
Translated from Spanish by Nick Joaquin. Text taken from the photo made in the museum by me personally.
