San Vicente Botanical Garden Series
Rizal in the Garden
Remembering Philippine National Hero Rizal
on Exile at Dapitan
Dr Abe V Rotor
The restored icon is now enshrined at the San Vicente Botanical Garden
(Living with Nature Center) San Vicente, Ilocos Sur.
Rizal was exiled to the remote town of Dapitan in Mindanao. Throughout his 4-year exile, Rizal practiced ophthalmology and general medicine at no charge to the townspeople. He became a farmer and proved that farming is a good profession. He demonstrated it on an abandoned farm he bought in Talisay, a barrio near Dapitan. This farm had an area of sixteen hectares and was rather rocky. Not only as a doctor and farmer he pursued scientific studies, continued his artistic and literary works, widened his knowledge of languages and established a school for boys. As a zoologist, Rizal discovered living organisms unnamed in his time, such as a flying (gliding) lizard (Draco Rizali), Harlequin Tree Frog (Racophorus Rizali), among others, named after him. (Reference: Internet)
