· Rizal was thrilled by the sights and memories of the Eternal City.

Describing to Blumentritt, the

“grandeur that was Rome”, he wrote on June 27, 1887

· June 29, 1887- the Feast Day of St. Peter and St. Paul, Rizal visited for the first time the Vatican,
the “City of the Popes” and the capital of Christendom

· Every night, after sightseeing the whole day, Rizal returned to his hotel, very tired. “I am tired as a
dog,” he wrote to Blumentritt, “but I will sleep as a God”

· After a week of wonderful sojourn in Rome, Rizal prepared to return to the Philippines. He had
already written to his father that he was coming home

FIRST HOMECOMING (1887-1888)

-Because of the publication of the Noli Me Tangere and the uproar it caused among the friars, Rizal was
warned by Paciano (his brother), Silvestre Ubaldo (his brother-in-law), Chengoy (Jose M. Cecilio) and
other friends not to return home.

-Rizal was determined to return to the Philippines for the following reasons: (1) to operate on his mother’s
eyes (2) to serve his people who had long been oppressed by Spanish tyrants (3) to find out for himself
how Noli and his other writings were affecting Filipinos and Spaniards in the Philippines and (4) to inquire
why Leonor Rivera remained silent

· July 29, 1887- Rizal wrote to his father, announcing his homecoming, “on the 15th of July, I shall
embark for our country, so that from the 15th to the 30th of August, we shall see each other”

DELIGHTFUL TRIP TO MANILA

-Rizal left Rome by train for Marseilles, a French port, which he reached without mishap.

· July 3, 1887-Rizal boarded the steamer Djemnah, the same streamer which brought him to
Europe 5 years ago

· July 30, 1887-at Saigon, Rizal transferred to another steamer, Haiphong, which was Manila-
bounded
· August 2, 1887- the steamer left Saigon for Manila

ARRIVAL IN MANILA

· August 3, 1887- the moon was full and Rizal slept soundly the whole night. The calm sea,
illuminated by the silvery moonlight, was a magnificent sight to him
· Near midnight of August 5, 1887, the Haiphong arrived in Manila

HAPPY HOMECOMING

· August 8, 1887- Rizal returned to Calamba

· In Calamba, Rizal established a medical clinic. His first patient was his mother, who was almost
blind.

· Rizal, who came to be called “Doctor Uliman” because he came from Germany, treated their
ailments and soon he acquired a lucrative medical practice
· Rizal opened a gymnasium for young folks, where he introduced European sports

· Rizal suffered one failure during his six months of sojourn in Calamba—his failure to see Leonor
Rivera
STORM OVER THE NOLI

· Governor General Emilio Terrero (1885-1888)-requesting Rizal to come to Malacańang Palace

· Don Jose Taviel de Andrade-a young Spanish lieutenant assigned by Governor General Terrero
to posed as bodyguard of Rizal

· Msgr. Pedro Payo (a Dominican)- sent a copy of Noli to Father Rector Gregorio Echavarria of the
University of Sto. Tomas for examination by a committee of the faculty

· The report of the faculty members of University of Santo Tomas stated that the Noli was
“heretical, impious, and scandalous in the religious order and anti-patriotic, subversive of public order,
injurious to the government of Spain and its function in the Philippine Islands in the political order”

· Permanent Commission of Censorship-a committee composed of priest and laymen

· Fr. Salvador Font- Augustinian cura of Tondo, head of the committee

-found the novel to contain subversive ideas against the Church and Spain, and recommended “that the
importation, reproduction, and circulation of this pernicious book in the islands be absolutely prohibited.”

· Fr. Jose Rodriguez- Augustinian priest, published a series of eight pamphlets under the general
heading Cuestiones de Sumo Interes (Questions of Supreme Interest) to blast the Noli and other anti-
Spanish writings

· Vicente Barrantes- Spanish academician of Madrid, who formerly criticized the Noli in an article
published in La Espańa Moderna (a newspaper of Madrid) in January, 1890

· What marred Rizal’s happy days in Calamba with Lt. Andrade were (1) the death of his older
sister, Olimpia, and (2) the groundless tales circulated by his enemies that he was “a German spy, an
agent of Bismarck, a Protestant, a Mason, a witch, a soul beyond salvation, etc.”

· Rev. Vicente Garcia-a Filipino Catholic priest-scholar, a theologian of the Manila Cathedral and a
Tagalog translator of the famous Imitation of Christ by Thomas A. Kempis
-writing under the penname Justo Desiderio Magalang, wrote a defense of the Noli which was published
in Singapore as an appendix to a pamphlet dated July 18, 1888, he blasted the arguments of Fr.
Rodriguez

· Rizal, himself defended his novel against Barrantes’ attack, in a letter written in Brussels, Belgium
in February 1880.
FAREWELL TO CALAMBA

· The friars asked Governor General Terrero to deport him, but latter refused because there was
no valid charge against Rizal in court.

· Rizal was compelled to leave Calamba for two reasons: (1) his presence in Calamba was
jeopardizing the safety and happiness of his family and friends (2) he could fight better his enemies and
serve his country’s cause with greater efficacy by writing in foreign countries

· Shortly before Rizal left Calamba in 1888, his friend from Lipa requested him to write a poem in
commemoration of the town’s elevation to a villa (city) by virtue of the Becerra Law of 1888

· Himno Al Trabajo (Hymn to Labor)- a poem written by Rizal dedicated to the industrious folks of
Lipa

IN HONGKONG AND MACAO (1888)

-Hounded by powerful enemies, Rizal was forced to leave his country for a second time in February 1888.
He was then a full-grown man of 27 years of age, a practicing physician, and a recognized man-of-letters

THE TRIP TO HONGKONG

· February 3, 1888-Rizal left Manila for Hong Kong on board the Zafiro
· February 7, 1888- Zafiro made a brief stopover at Amoy
· Rizal did not get off his ship at Amoy for three reasons: (1) he was not feeling well (2) it was
raining hard
(3) he heard that the city was dirty

· February 8, 1888- Rizal arrived in Hong Kong

· Victoria Hotel- Rizal stayed while in Hong Kong. He was welcomed by Filipino residents, including
Jose Maria Basa, Balbino Mauricio, and Manuel Yriarte (son of Francisco Yriarte (son of Francisco
Yriarte, alcalde mayor of Laguna)

· Jose Sainz de Varanda- a Spaniard, who was a former secretary of Governor General Terrero,

shadowed Rizal’s movement in Hong Kong

-it is believed that he was commissioned by the Spanish authorities to spy on Rizal

· “Hong Kong”, wrote Rizal to Blumentritt on February 16, 1888, “is a small, but very clean city.”

VISIT TO MACAO
-Macao is a Portuguese colony near Hong Kong.
-According to Rizal, the city of Macao is small, low, and gloomy. There are many junks, sampans, but few
steamers. It looks sad and is almost dead.

· February 18, 1888- Rizal, accompanied by Basa, boarded the ferry steamer, Kiu-Kiang for Macao
· Don Juan Francisco Lecaros- A filipino gentleman married to a Portuguese lady

-Rizal and Basa stayed at his home while in Macao

· February 18, 1888- Rizal witnessed a Catholic possession, in which the devotees were dressed
in blue and purple dresses and were carrying unlighted candles

· February 20, 1888- Rizal and Basa returned to Hong Kong, again on board the ferry steamer Kiu
Kiang

DEPARTURE FROM HONG KONG

· February 22, 1888- Rizal left Hong Kong on board the Oceanic, an American steamer, his
destination was Japan

· Rizal’s cabin mate was a British Protestant missionary who called Rizal “a good man”

ROMANTIC INTERLUDE IN JAPAN (1888)

-One of the happiest interludes in the life of Rizal was his sojourn in the Land of the Cherry Blossoms for
one month and a half (February 28-April 13, 1888)

· February 28, 1888- early in the morning of Tuesday, Rizal arrived in Yokohama. He registered at
the Grand Hotel
· Tokyo Hotel- Rizal stayed here from March 2 to March 7

· Rizal wrote to Professor Blumentritt: “Tokyo is more expensive then Paris. The walls are built in
cyclopean manner. The streets are large and wide.”

· Juan Perez Caballero-secretary of the Spanish Legation, who visited Rizal at his hotel who latter
invited him to live at the Spanish Legation

· Rizal accepted the invitation for two reasons: (1) he could economize his living expenses by
staying at the legation (2) he had nothing to hide from the prying eyes of the Spanish authorities

· March 7, 1888- Rizal checked out of Tokyo Hotel and lived at the Spanish Legation

· Rizal was favorably impressed by Japan. The things which favorably impressed Rizal in Japan
were: (1) the beauty of the country—its flowers, mountains, streams and scenic panoramas, (2) the
cleanliness, politeness, and industry of the Japanese people (3)the picturesque dress and simple charm
of the Japanese women (4) there were very few thieves in Japan so that the houses remained open day
and night, and in hotel room one could safely leave money on the table (5) beggars were rarely seen in
the city, streets, unlike in Manila and other cities
· Rickshaws-popular mode of transportation drawn by men that Rizal did not like in Japan

· April 13, 1888-Rizal left Japan and boarded the Belgic, an English steamer, at Yokohama, bound
for the United States
· Tetcho Suehiro- a fighting Japanese journalist, novelist and champion of human rights, who was
forced

by the Japanese government to leave the country

-passenger which Rizal befriended on board the Belgic

· April 13 to December 1, 1888- eight months of intimate acquaintanceship of Rizal and Tetcho

· December 1, 1888- after a last warm handshake and bidding each other “goodbye”, Rizal and
Tetcho parted ways—never to meet again

RIZAL’S VISIT TO THE UNITED STATES (1888)

· April 28, 1888- the steamer Belgic, with Rizal on board, docked at San Francisco on Saturday
morning

· May 4, 1888- Friday afternoon, the day Rizal was permitted to go ashore
· Palace Hotel- Rizal registered here which was then considered a first-class hotel in the city
· Rizal stayed in San Francisco for two days—May 4 to 6, 1888

· May 6, 1888-Sunday, 4:30PM, Rizal left San Francisco for Oakland

· May 13, 1888-Sunday morning, Rizal reached New York, thus ending his trip across the
American continent

· Rizal stayed three days in this city, which he called the “big town.”

· May 16, 1888- Rizal left New York for Liverpool on board the City of Rome. According to Rizal,
this steamer was “the second largest ship in the world, the largest being the Great Eastern”

· Rizal had good and bad impressions of the United States. The good impressions were (1) the
material progress of the country as shown in the great cities, huge farms, flourishing industries and busy
factories