Manila American Cemetery & Memorial

Manila has the Manila American Cemetery & Memorial in Bonifacio Global City. It is one of the most iconic landmarks of the city established in 1960. The cemetery covers the 150 acres and contains 17,202 graves of the soldiers who lost their lives during the World War II. It is the second largest American Cemetery on the foreign soil after the Normandy American Cemetery in France. The entire district of Bonifacio Global City used to the Philippine Army Camp. In the article “A Photographic History of Bonifacio Global City”, you can see fascinating historic photos of the changes that happened in Bonifacio Global City.

Sources
Guide to U.S. War Cemeteries and Memorials Located on Foreign Soil
Wikipidia
American Battle Monuments Commission

Serene & Green Environment

Soon after I arrived in Manila, a few of my friends recommended to visit Manila American Cemetery in Bonifacio Global City (BGC). They added that it’s a good place to walk around when you need some quiet time. Now I have visited the cemetery myself, I can understand why they said that. The landscape of the cemetery is beautiful. When I first saw it, it reminded me of the Arlington Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.

The cemetery is open daily to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The new visitor center is supposed to open this year. More details of the cemetery is available on their home page.

You might ask why you should visit the cemetery when you come to Manila. It is part of the Philippines history. The beautiful and serene cemetery will give you a nice break from the traffic and hectic life. Why don’t you stop by?

Manila American Cemetery Page

 

I wanted to take a photo of the State of Texas emblem on the floor since my husband is from Texas.

My husband’s cousin recently came to visit us in Manila from the U.S. On his first day, we took him to BGC, had lunch there, showed him around the High Street, and stopped at the American Cemetery at the end. My husband at first was not thrilled about my idea of taking him to the cemetery, but when we were walking around together, he told me that it was actually a good idea.

I secretly had a fist pump in my head.