Rizal's Travel in Europe

BY: CALA-OR AND SARNO

Rizal's Soujourn in Europe:

 COURSE TO SPAIN  
His studies continued in UST until he was unhappy at the Dominican institution. After finishing the 4th
year of his medical course in UST, Rizal, being disgusted with the method of instruction in the
Dominican-owned University and the racial prejudice of Dominican professors against Filipino
student, decided to study abroad. He predicted that his decision of studying abroad would not be
favored by his parents; he did not asked their blessing. And aside from studying in Spain he was on a
secret mission. This mission was to observe keenly the life and culture, languages and customs,
industries and commerce, and government and laws of the European nations in order to prepare
himself in the great task of liberating his oppressed people from the Spanish tyranny. The course to
Spain is the start of Rizal’s travels.      

  DEPARTURE FOR SPAIN  

Rizal’s departure for Spain was kept secret to avoid detection by the Spanish authorities and the
friars. Even his own parents did not know because his mother would not allow him to do so. Only his
older brother, his uncle, his sisters Neneng and Lucia, the Valenzuela family, Pedro Paterno, Mateo
Evangelista, the Ateneo Jesuit fathers, and some intimate friends. The Jesuit priests gave him letters
of recommendation to the members of their Society in Barcelona. He used the name Jose Mercado.
Before his departure he wrote a farewell letters for his beloved parents and another for his sweetheart
Leonor Rivera. On May 3, 1882, Rizal departed on board the Spanish steamer Salvadora bound for
Singapore. With tears in his eyes and gloom in his heard, he gazed the receding skyline of Manila. He
then took his pencil and paper and sketched it as it vanished in view.  

SINGAPORE  
(May 3, 1882) During the voyage he carefully observed the people and things on board the steamer.
There were sixteen passengers. He was the only Filipino and the rest were Spaniards, British, and
Indian Negroes. The captain of the ship, Donato Lecha befriended Rizal. To kill boredom of the
voyage, Rizal played chess with his fellow passengers. He then defeated them many times, for he
was a good chess player. On May 9, the Salvadora docked at Singapore. He then stayed at Hotel de
la Paz and spent two days on a sightseeing soiree of the city. He saw the famous Botanical Garden,
the beautiful Buddhist templates, the busy shopping district, and the statue of Sir Thomas Stanford
Raffles, who was the founder of Singapore. 

TO COLOMBO 
After days of staying in Singapore, Rizal boarded the ship Djemnah, which was a French steamer and
left Singapore for Europe on May 11. It was a larger and cleaner vessel which carried more
passengers. French was spoken on board and Rizal attempted to converse with his fellow
passengers in French, but he found out that his book French could not be understood, so he spoke a
mixed Spanish-Latin and with the help sketching on paper. By conversing daily with the French
passengers, he then was able to improve his knowledge of the French language. On May 17, the
Djemnah reached Point Galle, a seacoast town in southern Ceylon. Rizal was unimpressed by this
town. The following day the voyage resumed towards Colombo, the capital of Ceylon. After a few
hours of sailing, Rizal reached the city. Rizal was amazed by Colombo because of this scenic beauty
and elegant building. 

THROUGH SUEZ CANAL 

 From Colombo, the Djemnah continued the voyage crossing the Indian Ocean to the Cape coast of
Africa. Rizal sighted the barren coast of Africa, for the first time, which he called an ‘inhospitable land
but famous’. The next stopover was in Aden. He found the city, hotter than Manila and was amused
to see the camels for it was also his first time seeing them. From Aden the ship proceeded to the city
of Suez, the Red Sea terminal of Suez Canal. Upon arrival, Rizal disembarked and went sightseeing.
What impressed him most was the beautiful moonlight which reminded him of Calamba and his
family. The Djemnah took five days to traverse the Suez Canal. Rizal was thrilled because it was his
first trip through this canal which was build by Ferdinand de Lasseps. At Port Said, Rizal landed in
order to see the interesting sights. He was fascinated to hear multi-racial inhabitants speaking a wide
variety of language. 

NAPLES AND MARSEILLES 

From Port Said, the ship proceeded on its way to Europe. On June 11, Rizal reached Naples. This
city pleased Rizal because of its business activity, its lively people and its scenic beauty. He was
fascinated by the Mouth Vesuvius, the Castle of ST. Telmo and other historic sights of the city. The
night of June 12, the steamer docked at the French harbor of Marseilles. Rizal bid farewell to his
fellow passengers. He visited the famous Chateau d’lf where Dantes, was imprisoned. He stayed two
and a half days in Marseilles. 

BARCELONA 
On the afternoon of May 15, Rizal left Marseilles to proceed to Spain via train. He crossed the
Pyrenees and stopped for a day at the frontier town of Port Bou. After the passport inspection at Port
Bou, Rizal continued his trip by rail, finally reaching Barcelona on June 16, 1882. His first impression
of Barcelona was unfavorable. He thought of it as an ugly, dirty and its residents are inhospitable.
Later, he changed his impression and liked the city. He found it as a great city, with an atmosphere of
freedom and liberalism. He also found its people were open-hearted, hospitable, and courageous. He
enjoyed promenading along Las Ramblas which was the famous street in Barcelona. Filipinos in
Barcelona were some of his classmates in Ateneo, welcomed him. They gave him a party at café
Plaza de Cataluña. After toasts, Rizal in turn gave them the latest news and gossips in the
Philippines. In Barcelona, Rizal wrote a nationalistic essay entitled “Amor Patrio” which was his first
written article on Spain’s soil. He then sent his article to Basilio Teodoro Moran, publisher of Diariong
Tagalog. Basilio was deeply impressed by the article congratulated Rizal and asked Rizal to publish
more articles. While living in Barcelona, Rizal received bad news about the cholera outbreak ravaging
Manila and the provinces. Many people died and more were dying daily. Sad news was that his
beloved Leonor Rivera was getting thinner because of the absence of her loved one. Also, Paciano
advised Rizal to continue his medical course in Madrid. Heeding his advice, Rizal left Barcelona in the
fall of 1882 and proceeded to Madrid. 

MADRID 
On November 3, 1882, Rizal enrolled in the Universidad Central de Madrid. He took up took courses
—Medicine and Philosophy and Letters. Aside from the two major courses, he also studied painting
and sculpture in the Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando; he took lessons in French, German, and
English under private instructors; and assiduously practiced fencing and shooting in the Hall of Arms
of Sanz y Carbonell. Rizal lived a simple life in Madrid and knew that he came to Spain to study and
prepare himself for the service of his fatherland. He budgets his money and time and never wasted a
peseta for gambling, wine and women. On Saturday evening, he visits the home of Don Pablo Ortiga
y Rey who lived with his son and daughter. Don Pablo has been city mayor of Manila. Rizal then had
a love affair with Consuelo Ortiga y Perez, the daughter of Don Pablo. Rizal, being a lonely man in a
foreign country and far from his natal land, was attracted by Consuelo’s beauty and vivacity. Their
 love did not flourish because he was still engaged to Leonor Rivera and a friend of Rizal is also in-
love with Consuelo. 

FIRST VISIT TO PARIS 

On June 1883, Rizal left Madrid to visit Paris. He stayed at the Hotel de Paris but then moved to a
cheaper hotel. Like all tourists, Rizal was charmingly titillated by the attractive scenery of Paris such
as the beautiful boulevards, the Opera House, the Place de la Concorde, the Arch of Triumph, the
Bois de Boulogne, the Madelaine Church, the Cathedral of Notre Dame, the Column of Vendome, the
Invalides, and the Versailes. Rizal closely observed the French way of life and spending many hours
at the museums. In Spain, he became close with prominent Spanish liberal and republican Spaniards,
who were mostly Masons. Rizal was impressed by the way the Spanish Masons openly and freely
criticized the government policies and lambasted the friars. In March 1883, he joined the Masonic
lodge called Acacia in Madrid. His reason for joining was to secure Freemasonry’s aid in his fight
against the friars in the Philippines. Later he was transferred to Lodge Solidaridad where he became
a Master Mason on November 15, 1890. Still later, he was awarded the diploma as Master Mason by
Le Grand Orient de France in Paris. After departure for Spain, things turned from bad to worse in
Calamba. Harvests failed on account of drought and locusts. Also the Dominican-owned hacienda
increased the rentals of the lands cultivated by the Rizal family. Due to these crises, allowances of
Rizal were many times late or sometimes never arrived, causing too much suffering to him. And on
November 20, 21 and 22, 1884, Rizal was involved in student demonstrations. They were fighting for
Dr. Miguel Morayta who proclaimed that “the freedom of science and the teacher”. Such liberal view
was condemned by the Catholic bishops of Spain. On June 21, 1884 Rizal completed his medical
course in Spain. He was conferred the degree of Licentiate in Medicine by the Universidad Central de
Madrid. In the next academic year, he studied and passed al subjects leading to the degree of Doctor
of Medicine. Rizal also finished his studies in Philosophy and Letters with excellent ratings. 

PARIS TO BERLIN  
After completing his studies in Spain, Rizal went to Paris and Germany for his specialization in
ophthalmology. He chose this course of medicine because he wanted to cure his mother’s growing
eye ailment. He still hasn’t forgotten his ‘secret mission’—to observe the customs and lifestyle of the
Europeans so that someday he will render service to his fatherland. In 1885, after completing his
studies at Central University of Madrid, he went to Paris in order to acquire more knowledge in
ophthalmology. He was 24 then. He stopped over at Barcelona, on his way to Paris, to visit his friend
Maximo Viola who is also a medical student and a member of a rich family in Bulacan. And on the
November of that year, Rizal was living in Paris where he sojourned for about four months. He
worked as an apprentice of Dr. Louis de Weckert, who is a then, a leading French ophthalmologist.
And with his master, his knowledge in ophthalmology improved. While not working at Dr. Weckert’s
clinic, Rizal visited his friends, such as the family of Pardo de Taveras, Juan Luna and Felix
Resurreccion, Hidalgo. Rizal spent many happy hours in the studio of Luna. Luna discussed with
Rizal various problems on art and improved his own painting technique. Rizal posed to some painting
of Luna. He was one of the Egyptian priests in Luna’s painting “The Death of Cleopatra”. 

AT HEIDELBERG  
Rizal left Paris on February 1, 1886, after acquiring enough experience in the clinic of Dr. Weckert.
He was set to go to Germany. He visited Strasbourg and other German towns. On February 3, 1886,
he arrived in Heidelberg, a historic city in Germany famous for its old university and romantic
surroundings.  He lived in a boarding house with some German law students. The German students
found out that Rizal was a good chess player and made him a member of the Chess Player’s Club.
After a few days, he was transferred to a boarding house which was near University of Heidelberg.
 He worked at the University Eye Hospital under the direction of Dr. Otto Becker and attended the
lectures of Doctor Becker and Prof. Wilhelm Kuehne at the university. At weekends he visited the
scenic spots around Heidelberg which includes the Heidelberg Castle, the romantic Neckar Rivera,
the theater, and the old churches. Rizal noticed that the German Catholics and the Protestants
practiced ecumenism wherein they live together in harmony and cordiality. On April 22, 1886, spring
on Heidelberg, he wrote a poem to the beautiful blooming flowers at the Neckar River. Among those
was his favorite flower—the forget-me-not. Rizal then spent three-month summer vacation at
Wilhelmsfeld, a mountainous village close to Heidelberg. He stayed at the vicarage of a kind
Protestant pastor, Dr. Karl Ullmer. He was very delighted in his stay at the Ullmers. On July 31, 1886,
Rizal wrote his first letter in German to Professor Ferdinand Blumentritt. Rizal heard that Blumentritt
was interested in the Philippine languages. Along with the letter was a book entitled Aritmetica.
Delighted with Rizal, Blumentritt send gift books to Rizal. This marked the beginning of their long and
frequent correspondence. Rizal was fortunate to be sojourning in Heidelberg when the famous
University of Heidelberg held its fifth centenary celebration on August 6 of 1886. It was three days
before his departure and he was sad because he had come to love the land and the beautiful city. 

LEIPZIG AND DRESDEN

 On August 9, 1886, three days after the fifth centenary of the University of the Heidelberg, Rizal left
the city. He boarded a train and visited various cities of Germany until arriving in Leipzig on August
14, 1886. He attended some lectures in the University of Leipzig and befriended Professor Friedrich
Ratzel, a famous German historian, and Dr. Hans Meyer, German anthropologist. Rizal translated
William Tell from German to Filipino so that Filipinos might know the story of that champion of Swiss
independence. He also translated into Filipino Hans Christian Andersen’s Fairy Tales. Cost of living in
Leipzig is the cheapest in Europe so he stayed there for two months and a half. During his stay, he
corrected some chapters in his second novel and also had time for exercise. He also worked as a
proof-reader in a publishing firm and earning some money.  

DRESDEN 
Rizal left Leipzig to set course on Dresden on October 29, 1886. At Dresden, Rizal met Dr. Adolph
Meyer, the director of the Anthropological and Ethnological Museum. He stayed only two days in the
city. He heard the Holy Mass in a Catholic church which greatly impressed him, for he wrote “Truly I
have never in my life heard a Mass whose music had greater sublimity and intonation”. Morning of
November 1, Rizal left Dresden by train reaching Berlin in the evening.  

BERLIN
 Rizal liked Berlin because of its atmosphere which was very scientific and the absence of race
prejudice. Also, here he met Dr. Feodor Jagor author of Travels in the Philippines, a book that Rizal
admired because of its keen observances in the Philippine setting. Dr. Jagor in turn, introduced Rizal
to Dr. Rudolf Virchow, a famous anthropologist and to his son, Dr. Hans Virchow, professor of
Descriptive Anatomy. Rizal worked in the clinic of Dr. Karl Ernest Schweigger, a famous German
ophthalmologist. Rizal was the first Asian to be accorded with honors for being a member of the
Anthropological Society, the Ethnological Society, and the Geographical Society of Berlin. Dr.
Virchow recognized Rizal’s genius, invited him to give a lecture before the Ethnographic Society of
Berlin. Rizal wrote a scholarly paper entitled Taglische Verkunst (Tagalog Metrical Art) which elicited
favorable comments from all scientific quarters. Rizal led a methodological life in Berlin. He worked as
an assistant by day, and attended lectures at night. He kept himself physically fit by daily exercises
and speaking German, French and Italian. Rizal took private lessons in the French language under
Madame Lucie Cerdole in order to master the French language. He spends his leisure moments
touring the country sides of Berlin and observing the culture and life of the people. He also made
 sketches of the things he saw. About observing culture, Rizal greatly admired the German Yuletide
custom, wherein Germans would take bushes from a pine tree and dress it up with lanterns, papers
and candies. Another interesting custom in Germany is that, when a man has nobody to introduce
him to the other guests, he bows his head to the guests and introduces himself to the other guests
and shakes hands of everyone in the room. Not all the experiences of Rizal in Germany were good,
there is this one winter time wherein he lived in poverty because no money arrived from Calamba and
he was flat broke. During that time, he only eats one meal a day and had to wash his clothes himself
because he could not afford to pay the laundry. On Calamba, Paciano tried to raise money but crops
have failed due to locusts and the sugar market collapsed. 

NOLI ME TANGERE
PUBLISHED IN BERLIN  
Noli Me Tangere during Rizal’s stay in Berlin was unable to be published. But with the help of Maximo
Viola, who gave him the necessary funds to publish the novel, Noli Me Tangere was published. Viola
loaned Rizal money for publishing and for Rizal’s living expenses. With that, Rizal and Viola happily
celebrated the Christmas of 1886 in Berlin. During the printing of the Noli, the chief of police Berlin
paid a sudden visit to Rizal’s boarding house. The chief asked for Rizal’s passport, but Rizal couldn’t
show any. The chief told him to secure a passport within four days, otherwise he would be deported.
Rizal failed in obtaining his passport and presented himself at the German police office, politely
apologizing for his failure. The police then told him that Rizal was suspected as a French spy
because he came fro Paris and knew the language of the French people so well. Rizal explained in
German to the police that he was not a French spy, but a Filipino physician and scientist. With that,
he was allowed to stay freely in Germany. On March 21, 1887, the Noli Me Tangere came off the
printing press. Rizal immediately sent copies to his intimate friends, including Blumentritt, Dr. Antonio
Jaena, Mariano Ponce, and Felix R. Hidalgo. As a token of his appreciation and gratitude, Rizal gave
Viola the galley proofs of Noli carefully rolled around the pen that he used in writing. It also has a
dedication “To my dear friend, Maximo Viola, the first to read and appreciate my work—Jose Rizal.”
Noli Me Tangere was solely dedicated to the Philippines. He described the Philippines as a patient
with cancer that even with the most careful touch; it awakens in it the sharpest pains. The friends of
Rizal hailed the novel, appreciated its content and deeply touched and awakened by its fine truth. Of
all the congratulatory letters received by Rizal about Noli, that from Blumentritt was significant. “First
of all” wrote Blumentritt, “accept my cordial congratulations for your beautiful novel about customs
which interests me extraordinarily. Your work, as we Germans say, has been written with the blood of
the heart, and so the heart also speaks. I continue reading it with much interest…” 

GRAND TOUR OF EUROPE

 After the publication of Noli, Rizal planned to visit the important places in Europe. Rizal received his
money from Paciano worth 1,000 pesos. He immediately paid viola the sum of 300 pesos from his
kind loan. At dawn of May 11, 1887, Rizal and Viola left Berlin by train. Spring was in the air and
Europe is blooming with flowers. Their destination was Dresden, “One of the best cities in Germany”. 

DRESDEN 
Rizal and Viola spent some time in Dresden. Their visit coincided with the regional floral exposition.
Rizal studied different plants because he was interested in botany. They visited Dr. Adolph B. Meyer,
who was overjoyed to see them. They also visited the Museum of Art and Rizal was deeply
impressed by the painting of “Prometheus Bound”, a Greek mythological tragedy. While strolling at
the scene of the Floral Exposition, they met Dr. Jagor. Dr. Jagor advised them to wire Blumentritt of
 their coming because the old professor was of a nervous disposition and he might suffer a shock at
their sudden visit. Their next stopover was Teschen. Rizal and Viola sent a wire to Blumentritt, as
suggested by Dr. Jagor. 

BLUMENTRITT AND
LEITMERITZ
 At 1:30 p.m. of May 13, 1887, the train with Rizal and Viola on board arrived at the railroad station of
Leitmeritz, Bohemia. Professor Blumentritt waited for them in the station after he received the wire.
He was carrying a pencil sketch of Rizal which the letter had previously sent him, so that he could
identify his Filipino friend. He warmly welcomed Rizal and Viola. For the first time, Rizal and
Blumentritt met each other. They greeted each other in fluent German. Upon seeing the talented
Rizal, the old professor immediately took him into heart, loving him as a son. Rizal had beautiful
memories of his visit to Leitmeritz. He enjoyed the warm hospitality and enjoyed the cooking of the
professor’s wife Rosa. Blumentritt’s children were Dolores, Conrad, and Fritz. Blumentritt showed the
scenic sights and historical spots of Leitmeritz. One afternoon he invited them to a beer garden where
the best beer of Bohemia was served. At the beer garden, they met the burgomaster or the town
mayor. Blumentritt introduced the two to the burgomaster. Rizal talked in fluent German, for which the
burgomaster and his friends were amazed. On another afternoon, Rizal and Viola were invited to a
meeting o the Tourists’ Club of Leitmeritz, of Blumentritt was secretary. The members of the society
were amazed by the fluency of Rizal in German. Rizal painted a portrait of the kind professor and
gave it to him as a commemoration of his happy hours at the professor’s home. Rizal also met
another renowned scientist of Europe namely, Dr. Carlos Czepelak. Rizal had a nice conversation
with the Polish scholar. Blumentritt also introduced Rizal to Professor Robert Klutschak, an eminent
naturalist. On their last night in Leitmeritz, Rizal and Viola, reciprocated Blumentritt’s hospitality with a
banquet. On May 16, at 9:45 A.M., Rizal and Viola left Leitmeritz by train. Blumentritt and his family
were at the railroad station to see them off, and they all shed tears in parting as the train departed. 
Rizal carried with him all the beautiful memories of his visit to Leitmeritz. 

HISTORY CITY OF PRAGUE 

After their stay at Leitmeritz, Rizal together with Viola visited the city of Prague. They carried
recommendation letters from Blumentritt to Dr. Willkomm, a professor of natural history in the
University of Prague. The kind-hearted professor together with his wife and daughters welcomed
them and showed them the city’s historic spots. Rizal and Viola visited the tomb of Copernicus, the
museum of natural history, the bacteriological laboratories, the famous cave where San Juan
Nepomuceno was imprisoned, and the bridge from which the saint was hurled into the river. After
their stay at the home of the Willkomms, Rizal and Viola left Prague and went to Brunn. 

QUEEN OF THE DANUBE 

On May 20, Rizal and Viola arrived in the beautiful Vienna. Famous in songs and story, this city very
much fascinated Rizal because of its beautiful buildings, religions images and charm. Rizal and Viola
presented a letter of recommendation, from Blumentritt, to Norfenfals, one of the greatest novelists in
Europe during that time. The great novelist was impressed by Rizal’s genius. Later he spoke highly of
Rizal. Also in Vienna, Rizal received his lost diamond stickpin. It was found by a main in Hotel Krebs
and was given to Blumentritt who, in turn, forwarded it to Rizal. The two stayed at Hotel Metropole.
They visited the city’s interesting places, such as churches, museums, art galleries, theaters and
parks. 
 LINTZ 
On May 24, Rizal and Viola left Vienna on a river boat to see the beautiful sights of the Danube
Rivera. As they both travel with boat, Rizal observed the different sights like the barges loaded with
products, the flowers and plants growing along the river banks, the boats with families living on them,
and the quaint villages on the riversides. They also noticed that the passengers were using paper
napkins during meals. 

TO RHEINFALL, TO
SALZBURG, TO MUNICH TO
NUREMBERG
 The river voyage ended in Lintz. They traveled overland to Salzburg and from there to Munich where
they sojourned for a short time to savor the famous Munich beer, reputed to be the best in Germany.
From Munich they went to Nuremberg, an old city of Germany. Among the sights were the horrible
torture machines used by the Inquisition, in which Rizal examined carefully. Viola and Rizal were
greatly impressed by the manufacture of dolls in Nuremberg. After Munich, they visited Ulm. The
cathedral of this city was the largest and the tallest in all Germany. Viola related that he and Rizal
climbed its many hundred steps. Viola getting dizzy, but Rizal was not. From Ulm, they went to
Stuttgart, Baden and then Rheinfall. At Rheinfall, they saw the waterfall which was the most beautiful
waterfall of Europe. 

SWITZERLAND 
From Rheinfall, they crossed the frontier to Schaffhausen, Switzerland. They stayed in this city from
June 2 to 3, 1887. They then continued their tour to Basel, Bern, and Lausanne. After sightseeing in
Lausanne, Rizal and Viola left on a little boat, crossing the foggy Leman Lake to Geneva.  

GENEVA 
Rizal and Viola visited Geneva. This Swiss city is one of the most beautiful cities in Europe which was
visited by world tourist every year. The people of Geneva were linguists, speaking French, German,
and Italian. Rizal conversed with them in these three languages. Rizal and Viola also went boating on
the lake. Rizal showed his rowing prowess which he acquired during his boyhood days in Calamba.
On June 19, 1887, it was Rizal’s 26th birthday and treated Viola to a blow-out. Rizal and Viola spent
fifteen days in Geneva. On June 23, they parted ways. Viola decided to return to Barcelona while
Rizal continued his tour to Italy. 

MADRID EXPOSITION 
During his tour in Europe, Rizal received sad news from his friends in Madrid of the deplorable
conditions of primitive Igorots who were exhibited in this expositions, some of whom died and whose
clothing are inappropriate for the climate of Madrid, and crude weapons were objects of mockery and
laughter by the Spanish people and press. Rizal being a champion of human dignity was outrageous. 

ITALY 
 Rizal went to Italy. He visited Turin, Milan, Venice and Florence. On June 27, 1887, he reached Rome. He was
thrilled by the sights and memories of the Eternal City—Rome. On June 29th, Rizal visited for the first time the
Vatican, the “City of the Popes” and the capital Christendom. He was impressed by the magnificent edifices,
particularly of St. Peter’s Church which was also his feast day during that time. 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 staying in Rome, he prepared to return to the Philippines. He had already written to his father
that he was coming home.