Leyte Landing Memorial (Palo, Leyte)

Posted on 20 December, 1995 by Benjie Layug — Leave a reply

From the Sto. Nino Shrine & Heritage Museum, we were next driven 12 kms. to the next town of Palo where we visited our final destination, the Leyte Landing Memorial along Red Beach, 2 kms. north of the Palo town center. Marking the spot of Gen. Douglas MacArthur’s Leyte landing, this beautifully landscaped memorial was established in 1973.

Leyte Landing Memorial

The memorial contains the 7 bronze statues (1.5 times bigger than lifesize) of MacArthur (taller than the others to create perspective, it was designed by the late National Artist Leandro V. Locsin), Pres. Sergio Osmeña, Sr., Brig.-Gen. CarlosP. Romulo, Gen. Richard K. Sutherland (MacArthur’s Chief of Staff), Adm. Thomas C. Kinkaid followed by two staff members, standing on a shallow, man-made lagoon.

Red Beach

Fifty meters away is the Philippine Commemorative Rock Garden of Peace, designed by Renato L. Punzalan and built in 1994 for the 50th anniversary of the landing. It has messages of peace from leaders of different countries etched in stone slabs indigenous to these countries. These are set around a bronze sculpture of the Eternal Flame of Peace.

Rock Garden of Peace

Leyte Landing Memorial: Brgy. Candahug, Palo, Leyte.

This travel blog, a diary of the author’s local and international travels, aims to provide the reader with news and information on people, places and events that would interest the avid traveler and tourist. But, it also aims to be much more, providing insights on the wonders of this beautiful country, as well as the world, beyond the strict confines of the city. Have a BLAST seeing old churches, exotic temples, educational museums as well as palm-fringed islands; white sand beaches; thundering waterfalls; placid lakes; fiery sunsets; turquoise seas; cathedral-like caves; swirling rivers; majestic mountains; stupendous, amphitheater-like rice terraces; awesome volcanoes and the like. Get to know the movers and shakers in the tourism industry; find out where to titillate the palate; rejuvenate your body; feed your adrenalin, unwind and relax; satisfy your craving for history and culture; and find out what's being celebrated and where.

BENJAMIN “BENJIE” LAYUG, an architect by profession (he finished his B. S. Architecture degree from the University of the Philippines Diliman in 1982), is an avid reader, traveler and free-lance travel writer in his spare time, contributing articles to Travel Update, Philippine Daily Inquirer, COLORS, TODAY, 7107 Islands Magazine, Business Day, Bluprint and the Business Mirror.

He is also the author of the following travel books:

A Philippine Odyssey (New Day Publishers, 2005)
Pathfinder’s Travel Guide: Boracay (Great Books Trading, 2006)
A Tourist Guide to Notable Philippine Churches (New Day Publishers, 2007)
A Tourist to Notable Philippine Historical Landmarks, Monuments and Shrines (New Day Publishers, 2010)
A Tourist Guide to Notable Philippine Museums (New Day Publishers, 2012)

Some of his books now appear in the local library shelves of the National Library of the Philippines, De La Salle University, Ateneo de Manila University, University of Sto. Tomas, U.P. Diliman, Centro Escolar University, San Sebastian College, Miriam College, Silliman University, to name a few, as well as internationally at the National Library of Australia and the University of California Berkeley Library.

Now a senior citizen, he is probably one of the oldest, if not the oldest, active travel blogger in the country today. He also has a lifestyle blog called F.Y.I.:Firing Your Imagination (www.firingyourimagination.blogspot.com). Benjie has traveled to two-thirds (53) of the country’s 81 provinces and over 20 countries in 4 continents.