Ever since I chanced upon morefunwithjuan’s photoblog post about the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial late last year, I had been itching to go and have a look.  The place was literally a stone’s throw away from where I work (although it’s a good thirty minute walk to the gate) but I never found the time.  The cemetery is open for public visits daily from 9am to 5pm, with the exception of January 1 and December 25, but by the time I walk past it, I only have a handful of minutes left to explore.

Fortunately, a couple of weeks ago I found myself stranded in BGC.  I was in the city at around nine in the morning and my next appointment wasn’t until past noon.  I’ve just resigned myself to just sleeping in the backseat of my car when R texted, saying that his morning schedule just freed up.  Perfect!  I asked him if he had his camera with him because I wanted to check out some graves.  Being the awesome being that he is, he quickly jumped on board that weird train and was in the city in half an hour.

We walked to the cemetery but later on we found that the place had parking space for visitors.  The guard at the gate asked us for one ID and showed R the rules – I didn’t really look, but what I gather was that workout wear was prohibited because after all, this was a place where relatives pay their respects for their dead.

The place was very well maintained; the grass was manicured and was a vibrant green.  It would’ve been very easy to forget that the white marble crosses and the occasional Jewish stars housed the remains of the fallen World War II soldiers.

Manila American Cemetery and Memorial has a total of 17, 206 graves, making it the biggest cemetery in the Pacific for US personnel killed during the Second World War.  My mind still can’t wrap itself around the concept of so many people dying, most at a young age, in such a short span of time.

Mahogany trees also evenly dotted the premises.  They’re not enough to give a good shade though, so it’s still best to bring an umbrella.  Thankfully that day the weather was somewhat downcast, so we were comfortable walking around the premises.

In the middle of the cemetery there are the two hemicycles, which serve as a memorial for those whose remains were never recovered or identified.  There are still 36, 285 names inscribed in the Tablets of the Missing.

Although there’re these florets placed next to the names of those whose remains have been recovered.  The names of soldiers who received Medals of Honors were also embossed in gold.

In the space where the two hemicycles met stood the chapel.  It’s the most unique chapel I’ve ever seen, because instead of occupying space horizontally, the chapel stool taller than it is wide.

In the back of my mind I’ve always known that World War II was a devastatingly horrible thing that happened and many people died because of it.  I admit that because it happened so long ago from my timeline, I had been sheltered and had become desensitized to its outcome.  But seeing row after row after row of grave markers was a much-needed wake up call and reminder of the death and destruction that war brings.