CHAPTER 7: PARIS to BERLIN (1885-1887)
I. In Gay Paris
On Rizals way to Paris, he stopped at Barcelona to
visit his friend, Maximo Viola. He stayed there for a
week and befriended Senor Eusebio Corominas,
editor of the newspaper La Publicidad.
November 1885-February 1886
Rizal started living in Paris, and worked as an
assistant to Dr Louis De Weckert, French
ophthalmologist.
At the studio of Luna, Rizal helped by posing as
model in several paintings: The Death of
Cleopatra as an Egyptian priest; The Blood
Compact as Sikatuna.
II. Rizal as Musician.
Rizal learned: Solfeggio, piano, voice culture, and
flute.
Songs he composed: Alin mang Lahi(Any Race), a
patriotic song which asserts that any race aspires for
freedom, and La Deportacion (Deportation), which
he composed in Dapitan during his exile.
III. In Historic Heidelberg.
February 1, 1886 Rizal left Paris.
February 3, 1886 He arrived in Heidelberg.
April 1886 - He worked at the University Eye
Hospital under Dr. Otto Becker, German
Ophthalmologist.
IV. To The Flowers of Heidelberg.
April 22, 1886 Rizal wrote the poem A Las Flores
de Heidelberg (To the Flowers of Heidelberg.)
inspired by the flowers, forget-me-not, along the
banks of the Neckar River. It also reminded him of
the blooming flowers at the garden of his home.
V. With Pastor Ulmer at Wilhelhmsfeld.
April 1886 - June 25 1886
Rizal lived in Wilhelmsfeld, a Mountainous village
near Heidelberg. At the home of a kind protestant
pastor, Dr. Karl Ulmer.
VI. First Letter to Blumentritt.
July 31, 1886 - Rizal wrote his first letter in German
to Ferdinand Blumentritt, Director of the Ateneo of
Leitmeritz, Austria. Along with the book,
Aritmetica (Arithmetic) by Rufino Baltazar. In
Return, Blumetritt sent two books to Rizal as a gift.
He became Rizals best friend.
VII. Fifth Centenary of Heidelberg University.
August 6, 1886 - the University of Heidelberg held
its fifth centenary celebration.
VIII. In Leipzig and Dresden.
August 9, 1886 Rizal left Heidelberg
August 14, 1886 - Rizal arrived in Leipzig, attended
lectures at the University of Leipzig on History and
Psychology, met and befriended Professor Freidrich
Ratzel, a famous German Historian, and Dr. Hans
Meyer, German anthropologists. He also worked as
a proof-reader in a publishers firm.
Books he translated: Schillers William Tell, from
German to Tagalog. And Hans Christian Andersens
Fairy Tales, for his nephews and nieces.
October 29, 1886 - Rizal left Leipzig for Dresden,
and met Dr. Adolph B. Meyer, Director of
Anthropological and Ethnological Museum.
November 1, 1886 Rizal left Dresden by Train.
IX. Rizal welcomed in Berlins Scientific Circles.
Novermber 1, 1886 Arrived in Berlin, Rizal met
and befriended: Dr. Feodor Jogor, German
Scientist-Traveler, the author of the book, Travels in
The Philippines; Dr. Rudolf Virchow, German
Anthropologist; his son, Dr. Hans Virchow,
professor of Descritive Anatomy; and Dr. W. Joest,
German Geographer.
Rizal worked in the clinic of Dr. Karl Earnest
Schweigger, a German ophthalmologist.
He became a member of the Anthropological, the
Ethnological, and the Geographical Society of
Berlin. These memberships proved that his
scientific knowledge was recognized by Europes
scientists.
He wrote Tagalische Verkunst (Tagalog Metrical
Art) scholarly paper in German, he read before the
society in April 1887.
X. Rizals life in Berlin.
Rizal went to Germany for five reasons:1) To gain
further knowledge of ophthalmology, 2) To further
his studies of sciences and languages, 3) To
observe the economic political conditions of the
German nation, 4) To associate with famous
German scientists and scholars, and 5) To publish
his novel, Noli Mi Tangere.
Rizal practiced speaking German, French, and
Italian. He took private lesson under a professor of
French, Madame Lucie Cerdole.
XI. Rizal on German Women.
March 11, 1886 - Rizal wrote a letter to his younger
sister, Trinidad, where Rizal expressed his high
regard and admiration for German womanhood.
According to Rizal, a German woman is serious,
diligent, educated, and friendly. She is not gossipy,
frivolous, and quarrelsome like the Spanish woman.
He also said that the women in the Philippines are
more interested in how they dress than in how much
they know; and if only they can cultivate their
intellect by education and by taking more interest in
worldly affairs, then they can command the respect
of all men.
XII. German Customs.
Rizal admired the German customs. Note that he
was a keen observer of the customs of the peoples
in all the countries he visited.
XIII. Rizals Darkest Winter.
Winter of 1886 - He lived in poverty because no
money arrived from Calamba. The Diamond ring,
Saturnina gave him, was in the pawnshop. He could
not pay his landlord. He had to eat one meal a day.
His clothes were old and threadbare. His health
broke down due to lack of proper nutrition.