This is an entry that should have been done a week before. But due to prior commitments and other matters I had to postpone it. But since it is still a month of remembrance of the departed, better late than never in sharing this particular entry.
As a post-All Saints Day entry, the Urban Roamer decided to check out a cemetery as it is a yearly tradition here. This year, we went up deep in Quezon City to visit the vast memorial park known for its patriotic Filipino flair, the Himlayang Pilipino Memorial Park.
As far as the Urban Roamer’s knowledge was concerned, there was a smaller cemetery located right next to Manila South Cemetery, the Makati Cemetery in the city’s Barangay Valenzuela. So after roaming Manila South Cemetery, I decided to walk on and check out Makati Cemetery…
Only to find out it was actually closed, which was weird considering that cemeteries are not usually closed to the public unless something was up. It was only recently that I got the full story.
It’s the Halloween-All Saints-All Souls season once more, which means another opportunity for the Urban Roamer to roam those places few people don’t really dare to wander off to except on this occasion. In the past years, the Urban Roamer has walked around a number of cemeteries around the metropolis, which you can check out in our archives. This year, we check out a certain cemetery that lies in a unique geographical situation. Unique in the sense that it lies within the borders of one city but is administered by another city, the Manila South Cemetery.
It is that time of the year once again to remember all things and frightening. For this year, the Urban Roamer headed down south in that wide and bitterly contested Fort Bonifacio area to visit one of the most prominent burial places in the metropolis and the country as a whole. Yes, today we visit the Libingan Ng Mga Bayani, ibingwhich literally means the burial ground of heroes.
Heroes Memorial Gate at the entrance to the Libingan Ng Mga Bayani, which has a metal sculpture at its center and a viewdeck which bears images from the country’s history, especially military history
Its origins can be traced back in May 1947, when the Republic Memorial Cemetery was established in what was then known as Fort McKinley to serve as a final resting place that would honor the men and women who have served the country well, particularly the ones who have served during World War II as well as those in the military service. Then in 1954, President Ramon Magsaysay renamed the cemetery to the name we know today as the “Libingan Ng Mga Bayani.” It was further expanded in area and given more prominence in 1967 by President Ferdinand Marcos as it was elevated to become a national shrine for the country’s heroes, whether they served in military or not.
