Corregidor is shaped somewhat like a horizontal sperm. It is split into 4 parts: Top side (the top half of the sperm's head), Bottom side (the bottom half of the sperm's head), Middle side (the section of the tail closest to the head) and Tail side (the rest of the tail). We loaded into the tour bus, and headed towards Tail side, where there were various memorial sites.
Along the way, we stopped at Lorcha Dock, General MacArthur's launching off point on his way to Australia. Nearby was a large bronze statue of the man with a plaque inscribed "I Shall Return".
Our next stop was the Filipino Heroes Memorial, which has large bronze murals of Filipino wars throughout history. On top of a museum filled with paintings of wartime atrocities by the Japanese, was a large bronze sculpture of a Filipino with a plow in one hand and a rifle over his shoulder, depicting the fact that many Filipinos farmed by day and fought by night.
Friday, July 25, 2014
Corregidor Pt. 1
My day started at 5 am. We were told to be at the Peninsula Hotel by 6:30 so we could get to the docks on time for our trip to Corregidor, an incredibly historically important island about 50 km west of Manila Bay. For those of you who aren't WWII buffs, Corregidor was the last stronghold against the Japanese in the Philippines. President Quezon transferred his seat of power to the large bomb shelter/tunnel system there; General Wainwright surrendered to the Japanese at Corregidor; General MacArthur started his island hopping retreat at Corregidor. All in all, Corregidor was an incredibly important island for Japan, the US, and the Philippines during WWII.
After a very speedy breakfast at the Peninsula, the driver took us to the docks, about 20 minutes away. After a half-hour, we boarded a "fast ferry", which is what the company calls their boats. All available space on the ferry was used for passenger seating, so unfortunately, there was no deck space to wander on. The boat ride was just over an hour, and to kill time, they played a bad movie: "The Spy Next Door" with Jackie Chan.
After a very speedy breakfast at the Peninsula, the driver took us to the docks, about 20 minutes away. After a half-hour, we boarded a "fast ferry", which is what the company calls their boats. All available space on the ferry was used for passenger seating, so unfortunately, there was no deck space to wander on. The boat ride was just over an hour, and to kill time, they played a bad movie: "The Spy Next Door" with Jackie Chan.
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