Of all the prominent Filipino heroes, perhaps none is more well-traveled than the prolific writer Jose Rizal. Because of his unfortunate run-in with the guardia civil and his unpopularity with the Dominicans, among other things, Rizal heeded the advice of others and left the Philippines in 1882. His studies, writing, and political endeavors brought him to Madrid, Berlin, Switzerland, Japan, United States, France and so on.

With Rizal’s tracks scattered across the globe and because of his large role in the country’s struggle for freedom, it is no surprise that his name has become known to people of other nationalities.

His life has been retold and researched by numerous scholars, both local and foreign. Some even go to the extent of devoting their whole lives to knowing Rizal.

Among them is Lucien Spittael, a Belgian historian and member of the Order of Knights of Rizal, a fraternal organization dedicated to studying and promoting the teachings of Rizal.

Discovering Rizal

Spittael was married to Madeline, a Filipina, in 1972. But it was only in 1991 that he became interested in Dr. Jose Rizal. He was the president of the Belgian-Filipino Association when he attended a meeting at the Philippine Embassy in Belgium in 1991. It was the centennial year of Rizal’s El Filibusterismo which was first printed in Ghent, Belgium.

Spittael then started reading Rizal’s biography and writings. Impressed by Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, he started studying the hero’s life and ideals.

“A new world was opening to me,” he said.

He was assigned to work in Heidelberg, Germany and for the next few years he retraced Rizal’s footsteps.

“I really walked in Rizal’s footsteps in the described towns, climbed the 519 steps of the Cathedral tower in Cologne, located the statues, visited museums, performed the same train trips and executed Rizal’s Rhine trip from Mainz to Bonn six times. During those Rhine trips, sometimes I really imagined I made the trip back in 1886 while reading Rizal’s diary,” he wrote.

Suzanne Thill

Spittael’s most cited discovery is Suzanne Thill, an 18-year-old girl who lived in the same building Rizal was residing in during his stay in Brussels, Belgium. Based on stories and letters, Rizal, while in Brussels, had a relationship with a certain Suzanne. Historians initially thought it was Suzanne Jacoby, his 45-year old landlady. But in 1995, Spittael , after researching in the Brussels City Hall archives, discovered that there were two Suzannes in the building, the younger being Thill, Jacoby’s niece.

Spittael said several letters with the signatory “Petite (young) Suzanne” and one signed “Suzanne T.” were found to have been sent to Rizal in Madrid, as proof that Rizal’s girlfriend was the younger Suzanne.

It also led him to find the exact location of the boarding house in rue de Philippe de Champagne after it was renumbered from 38 to 42 in 1900.

Rizal in Belgium

Rizal moved from Paris to Brussels in 1890 because he needed to live frugally and focus on his work. His friends—including fellow propagandist Marcelo Del Pilar and reformist Valentin Ventura—and their social life proved to be a distraction from Rizal’s task.

In Brussels, Rizal worked in a clinic and spent time on his various interests such as shooting and sculpting. It was there that he worked on El Filibusterismo. Lacking money and beset by the troubles in his hometown of Calamba, Rizal found a publisher in Ghent who agreed to be compensated in small partial payments.

Barong and salakot discovered

In 2009, Spittael and his wife discovered several unpublished letters of Rizal. One of them was addressed to a certain Dr. Bastian, friend of Blumentritt and owner of a private ethnographic museum.

Rizal supposedly sent him around twenty objects.

Spittael wrote to the ethnological museum in Berlin—which miraculously survived two world wars—and was allowed to see the items. It was mostly clothing items:  saya, kalikut, calzon, barong, salakot (Rizal’s own), different camisas, etc.

Pictures of the 21 objects were presented in the recent International Sesquicentennial Conference: Rizal in the 21st Century sponsored by the University of the Philippines.

Citizen of the world

Dubbed the first Global Filipino, Rizal traveled to other countries and learned their culture and language. In Cuba, students are required to memorize “Mi Ultimo Adios.” In Malaysia, he was named the Great Malayan and in China, Austria, Germany and Spain, monuments were built and festivities have been held in his honor.

“Rizal is alive here in many minds,” said Knights of Rizal chapter commander Rainer Weber during Rizal’s 150^th birthday celebration at the Rizal Park in Wilhemsfeld, Germany, the same country where Rizal studied ophthalmology.

Heidelberg’s mayor Dr. Joachim Gerner also said, “The city is proud that Rizal is one of the people in the 19th century who lived and studied in Heidelberg, later on becoming a leader in his country in the movement of liberation, against colonialism.” The former mayor of Heidelberg also became a member of the Knights of Rizal.

But more than Rizal’s physical connection to the places he visited, people of other nationalities identify with him because of the universality of his aspirations, not only for himself but for his countrymen.

Spittael said, “Rizal’s love for the Philippines, for freedom, love for country was his constant inspiring passion, which motivated him to sacrifice everything. He suffered everything for his country and his kababayans. His whole life was dedicated to his country.”

While it makes Filipinos proud that foreign scholars are immensely devoted to Rizal, it may be disheartening for others that some of their countrymen remain ignorant about the patriot’s life.

Interestingly, Rizal once wrote to Blumentritt, “Is it not sad, I said to my countrymen, that we have to learn from a foreigner about ourselves? Thanks to the German scholars we get accurate information about ourselves, and when everything in our country has been destroyed and we wish to verify the historical correctness of certain facts we shall have to come to Germany to search for these facts, in German museums and books!”

Noong nasa Alemanya pa kami nakatira, at napapasyal sa kilalang lugar na Heidelberg dahil ito ay malapit lamang sa aming baryo, kay dami kong kababayan na nasasalubong doon.

Marami sa kanila ay mga taga-Heidelberg o kalapit na lugar, pero ang kadalasan ay mga bisita o mga turistang Pinoy.

Kapag nakasalubong mo sila, nagtama ang inyong paningin at nagkaroon sila ng lakas ng loob ng magtanong ng “Pilipina ka ba?” ang susunod na itatanong nila ay “Saan ba dito sa Heidelberg ang estatwa ni Jose Rizal?”

Ilang beses na akong napagtanungan ng ganyan. Minsan nga, sa isang restoran, talagang nilapitan pa ako ng isang waiter na Aleman. Kung Pilipina ba daw ako. Sagot ko ay oo. Tuwang-tuwa sya sa positibo kong sagot. Kasi daw ay may mga kababayan daw ako na nagtatanong kung saan matatagpuan yung estatwa ng Pilipinong bayani na si Rizal sa Heidelberg. Hindi daw nya alam, sigurado daw na mas alam ko!

Nakakahiya man e umamin ako: hindi ko po talaga alam. Basta ang napag-alaman ko sa history teacher ko sa unibersidad na talaga namang fan na fan ni Jose Rizal ay nasa Heidelberg daw ito.

E sa laki ng Heidelberg, at sa dami ng university buildings na nakapalibot dito – mahirap tukuyin kung nasaan nga ang kanilang hanap. Yun ang nagiging sagot ko kapag napagtatanungan ako. Na ang ibig sabihin lamang ay, hindi ko po alam, pasensya na po!

Minsan, sunod -sunod ang nagtanong sa akin. Sa e-mails, sa mga forums at pati sa mga kausap kong Pinay na nakatira sa ibang sulok ng Alemanya. Asan nga ba daw ang sikat na estatwa ni Rizal sa Heidelberg?

Sa pamamagitan ng pagbabasa ko ng mga libreng dyaryo na parating isinusuot sa aming mail box at sadyang nakumpirma ko naman sa internet — nalaman ko na ang estatwa pala ni Jose Rizal ay nasa Wilhelmsfeld, isang lugar na malapit sa Heidelberg pero wala mismo sa Heidelberg. Ang Wilhelmsfeld ay matatagpuan sa bundok ng Odenwald.

Nang nagkapanahon kami, hinanap nga namin at inabot pa kami ng halos kalahating oras na biyahe galing Heidelberg bago namin marating ang Jose Rizal Park sa Alemanya.

Ibig sabihin noon, araw-araw na naglalakad nang mahigit na tatlong oras si Jose Rizal papunta sa kanyang eskwelahan sa Heidelberg. Ganoon kalayo ang Wilhelmsfeld mula sa Heidelberg!

At nakakakiliting malaman namin na hindi lamang estatwa meron dun si Jose Rizal kundi meron pa syang parke!At eto pa, meron ding Jose Rizal Strasse (Jose Rizal Street). Sikat na sikat pala talaga doon ang ating national hero.

Tinahak muna namin ang buong tumbok ng Jose Rizal Street. Ang gumulantang sa amin ay isang bahay na may memorial plaque. Nakalagay na dun pala tumira si Jose Rizal nung nag-aaral sya ng medisina sa Heidelberg.1964 nung ipinangalang Jose Rizal ang kalye na iyon; ang kauna-unahang kalye sa labas ng Pilipinas na nabinyagan ng pangalan niya.

Nuong 1886, nag-aral si Jose Rizal sa Heidelberg ng pagiging optometrist kasabay ng pag-aaral niya ng salitang Aleman. Tatlong buwan siyang nagpalipat-lipat ng matutuluyan, bago siya lumipat sa Wilhelmsfeld sa bahay ng Protestant Pastor na si Karl Ullmer. Tumira doon ng dalawang buwan pa si Rizal.

Dito rin nya natapos ang pagsusulat ng Noli me Tangere na linimbag sa Berlin makaraan ang ilang buwan. Sa bahay na ito rin nya natapos ang kanyang tulang “A las Flores de Heidelberg.” Nagkaroon ng memorial plaque para kay Jose Rizal nuong 1960 sa mismong bahay na ito.

At nasundan din ito ng mga Rizal memorial plaques sa Heidelberg, sa Grabenstrasse 12 (Buchhandlung Ziehank) kung saan sya tumuloy din at sa Bergheimer Street 20 na kinatatayuan ng lumang University Eye Clinic kung saan sya nag-aral.

Hindi lamang iyon. Ang kanilang sikat na bisita ay pinahalagahan ng mga taga-Wilhelmsfeld sa pamamagitan ng pagtatayo ng sarili nilang Jose Rizal Park nuong 1978. Nandoon ang estatwa ni Jose Rizal na kaharap ang isang fountain na may mga nakapaligid na mga bato na simbulo ng mga isla ng Pilipinas.

Sa kabilaan ay may mga busts ng mga naging kaibigan nya na sina Pastor Karl Ullmer at Ferdinand Blumentritt, isang Czech professor at historian. At ng mga naging guro nya na sina Otto Becker, isang sikat na professor ng medisina at isa pang professor at sikat na pathologist na si Rudolf Virchow.

Dito sa maliit na baryo na ito ng Wilhelmsfeld ang sentro ng selebrasyon kapag araw ng kaarawan ni Jose Rizal tuwing ika-19 ng Hunyo at sa araw ng kanyang kamatayan tuwing ika-30 ng Disyembre.

Nuong 1997 ng Disyembre din nagkaroon ng grupong Knights of Rizal, Wilhelmsfeld Chapter sa Alemanya. Ngayon ay marami na itong chapter na matatagpuan sa Bonn, Berlin, Cologne, at Hamburg.

Bumalik kami sa Jose Rizal Park noong araw ng kanyang kaarawan. Alam ninyo ba kung ano ang aming nasaksihan? Ang daming tao. Wala nang parking space. Talagang naglakad kami ng malayo bago namin marating ang Jose Rizal Park.

Ang mga Aleman na miyembro ng Knights of Rizal ay naka-barong tagalog lahat. At may mga bagong miyembro silang pararangalan ng araw na iyon. Nakagayak ang buong parke. Takbuhan ang mga bata, at ang mga bisitang halo-halong lahi ay may kanya-kanyang responsibilidad nuong araw na iyon. Karamihan ay taga-dala ng pagkain, may mga nagbebenta ng tradisyonal na Pinoy items, may mga tagasalubong sa mga bisita, may mga tagaayos ng dekorasyon, at kung anu-ano pa. Bayanihan spirit din.

Nagkaroon ng wreath-laying sa harap ng estatwa ni Rizal. Nagkaron ng pasasalamat. Nagkaroon ng konting salu-salo. Parang piyesta talaga.

Ano namang pinagsalu-salohan? Halo-halo din, pero umangat ang lutong Pinoy tulad ng lumpiang shanghai, dinuguan at puto, afritada, menudo, pansit, cassava cake, sapin-sapin, at kung ano-ano pang kakanin. Sinamahan na din yan ng mga tradisyonal na pagkain ng Alemanya tulad ng currywurst, potato salad, at ang mga cakes na pandagdag ng sarap!

Kaya sa mga kababayan natin na nasa Alemanya, o malapit lamang sa bansang Alemanya – bisitahin nyo na ang Jose Rizal Park sa Alemanya. Lalo na kapag Hunyo 19 at Disyembre 30 – nandun ang isa pang Jose Rizal Park kung saan makakatikim kayo ng tunay ng piyestang Pilipino.

Photos from Raquel Erhard’s collection. Some rights reserved.
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A former stay-at-home mom in Germany who loves to share her parenting and expat stories by blogging about them at Homeworked; Raquel Erhard is now back in the Philippines where she is a publisher of The International Filipino, a newspaper for overseas and migrant Pinoys; and has an advocacy to promote the Philippines as a tourism haven and is deep into creating a model community for retirement and healthcare of expatriates in the Philippines.

Article originally appeared here.