CHAPTER 7- RIZAL IN

HONGKONG, JAPAN AND

AMERIKA
 February 1888- Rizal go to abroad
for the 2nd time
 2 weeks- sojourn in Hongkong
(British Colony)
 Jose Maria Basa- accompanied him
to visit to Macau
 Macau- small and gloomy, sad,
almos t dead
 He studied Chinese way of life
 Chinese way of life
1. Chinese New Year was very noisy
because of firecrackers on streets.
2. Chinese theaters are boisterous
(noisy, energetic, cheerful) because
of percussion instrument use by
participants
3. Lauriat party; guest served variety
of dishes
4. Dominican Order was the richest
religious order in Hongkong,
millions of dollars deposited in
various banks earning fabulous
interest
Hongkong graveyards for Catholics,
Protestants and Muslim are well
kept
S.S Oceania- American streamer
bound for Japan
 Rizal in Japan
 February 28,1888- Rizal arrive in
Yokohama and stay at Grand Hotel
 Lived in Spanish legation- official
headquarters of minister in
diplomatic service
 Tokyo- bigger than Paris
 Things impressed him in Japan:
1. Beauty of a country- mountains
covered by snow during winter,
Sakura (Cherry Blossoms)
2. Japanese have great fondness for
gardens, fill any space on their
plots with trees and plants no
matter how small the spaces maybe
3. Japanese women in kimono-simple
but gracious
4. Seeing guest needs is an important part of
serving a host
5. Even in simplest occasion, gifts are taken as
part of giver’s respect and good will. Seasonal
gifts are important aspects of their culture
6. Basic form of greeting as a sign of politeness
is to bow
7. There are few thieves in Japan. Houses
remained open in day and night. Other
valuable articles on the table without being
lost
8. There are few beggars and are rarely
seen in city streets
9. Houses were very clean, have plenty
of fresh air and sunlight
10. Japanese are happy, fights are not
seen in streets, people are very
industrious
 Quite disgusted to see men pulling

rickshaws like horses

Rizal’s Romantic Interlude with O-Sei-San

 Started in March 1888 when he entered

a department store in Yokohama to
buy something
 Her name was Seiko Usui
 O Sei San is her pet name
 O Sei San invite him to Tea Ceremony-
Japanese customary tradition signify
harmony, reverence, purity, tranquility
 Almost made Rizal to stay in Japan
for good but fate had its own way
 April 1882- boarded Belgic, an
English streamer in Yokohama,
bounded for United States of
America
 Rizal in America
 San Francisco Port- onboard ship
with Rizal; strict quarantine makes
him not allow to disembark until
May 4, 1888
 Ship were place in quarantine
because of racial prejudice
 Ship carry 643 Chinese coolies-
unskilled laborers
 Cheap Chinese coolie were not allowed
to enter in USA because white laborers
were being displaced in construction of
railroad tracks
 Stay at Palace Hotel; paid $4 a day with
bath and everything
 Golden Gate Bridge- marvel of
engineering and one of the most
beautiful structures
 Market Street- best street in San
Francisco
 Leland Stanford-millionaire senator
in California, founder of Stanford
University in Palo Alto, California
 2days- stayed in San Francisco then
left for Oakland
 Oakland- he took overland train-
railroad sleeping car (Pullman)
 Tunnels- made of wood to protect
the road against snow
 Omaha- city of Nebraska, on
Missouri River is twice as Pasig
River
 Chicago- every cigar store has an
Indian figure
 Niagra- the most splendid falls
 May 13, 1888- Sunday at 11:30am
Rizal arrive in New York
 Rizal in New York
 Rizal called it Big Town
 George Washington- a great
American president
 May 16,1888- left New York for
Liverpool-seaport in Southwestern
Lancashire in England
 City of Rome- 2nd biggest boat in the
world
 May 24,1888- arrived at Liverpool,
England
 Impression of Rizal vis-a vis America
 Tremendous material progress of the
country
 Defects of America
1. No true civil liberty
2. Negro cannot marry a white woman
3. Americans offers a fatherland for
the poor who wish to work
 Wrote a letter addressed to Mariano
Ponce
 Jose Alejandro- studying in Belgium
who ask Rizal’s impression in
America
 Rizal’s impression in America-
America is the land par excellence of
freedom but only for the whites