 As early as 1936, an American biographer of Jose Rizal claimed that there was a monument of the Filipino hero in every town in the Philippines. Although hyperbolic, such remark does suggest the proliferation of his memorials. This phenomenon is consistent with the general popularity and appropriation of Rizal. John Foreman estimated in 1906 that one-third of the towns had either a Plaza de Rizal or a Calia de Rizal. Less than ten years after Rizal's death, the Manila Times already doted his usage in the following commodities. Almanacs, bakery, butcher shop, buttons, calendars, cigars, cigarettes, drug stores, hanger chips, pins, shirts, shoes, socks, theater and watches. By 1914, an American writer claimed it would be impossible now to stop the Rizal cult, adding that even lead pencils and cocktail drinks were being named after him. Today, Rizal's eponyms are further found in auto supplies, banks, beach, beer, cement, funeral homes, hospitals, matches, movie house, navy ship, soft drinks, stadium, tablets and vinegar, among many others. It is a veritable brand name with products from A to Z. However, although there are a number of Rizal related laws including the renaming of the district of Morong to the province of Rizal and the erection of the Rizal Monument in Luneta, there is none regarding the building of a Rizal monument in every town. The proliferation of Rizal monuments, like the assumption of Rizal as national hero, appears to be by tradition and acclamation. A more recent development in the topic of this video is the emergence of Rizal monuments outside the Philippines. Contrary to the Anderson epigraph, there were already 14 Rizal monuments in the USA by 2006. Aside from the aforementioned statue in Chicago, there are statues or busts in the following outdoor public places. Maui, College Walk Mall, Lihue, Seattle, Rizal Heritage Center Chicago, Sherry Hill, West Covina, National City, Seafood City Restaurant, Jersey City, Orlando, Juneau, Waipahu, and Houston. More recent ones were unveiled at the Filipino American Community Center in historic Filipino town Los Angeles, California and at the International Sculpture Garden in Carson, California. Furthermore, there is an undated Rizal sculpture in Milalani Memorial Park, Waipahu, Hawaii. In some, excluding the busts found in the Philippine Embassy and Consulates, there are at least 17 public outdoor Rizal monuments in the United States alone. Indeed, since 1967, when one of the first Rizal statues outside the Philippines was unveiled in Mexico, more than two out of every three documented inauguration of a Rizal memorial have been outside the Philippines. Aside from those in the United States, 32 Rizal busts or statues are presently located in 19 other countries, namely Andorra, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Cuba, Czech Republic, Egypt, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Peru, Spain, Switzerland, and Venezuela. Moreover, at least 25 standalone plaques are found in 17 cities including Barcelona, Berlin, Bern, Brussels, Colombo, Geneva, Ghent, Heidelberg, Hong Kong, London, Madrid, Paris, San Francisco, Singapore, Schaufhausen, Stuttgart, Vienna. A plaque was also placed at the toy center in New York in 1995, but was removed when the building was sold. Another marker at Heidelberg, Germany, was likewise removed due to renovations in the building and has not been returned. Most recently, a third plaque, this time in Madrid, was reported missing in 2013. Aside from statues, busts, and plaques, there are other forms of Rizal memorials. Thirteen Rizal parks or squares are found in the following, Australia, Canada, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, New Zealand, Peru, and the United States. There are seven Rizal streets or avenues in Barcelona, Campodown, Chicago, Markham, San Francisco, Wilhelmsfeld, and Winnipeg. There is a Rizal bridge in Seattle, a Rizal bench in Winnipeg, a Rizal garden in London, a Rizal suite in Colombo, a Rizal embankment in Heidelberg, a Sala Rizal in Barcelona, and a Hall in France. These do not even include the Rizal busts, conference room, libraries, and central results found in a number of Philippine embassies, consulates, and missions abroad. In sum, there are presently 52 Rizal monuments and 31 standalone plaques in 25 countries overseas. Including the other forms of memorials, this adds up to 108 Rizal memorials in 29 countries. In contrast, there were only 10 plaques and no monuments in five countries in 1960. An obvious impetus for the erection of monuments on markers is to memorialize certain people and events. Rizal spent almost 10 of his 35 years overseas. Including his four years in the Pitan in Mindanao, he spent virtually his entire adult either overseas and or in exile. The numerous plaques and statues of Rizal in other countries proudly indicate the extent of his travels. Consequently, historical markers or monuments had been unveiled in the following places. Berlin, Brussels, Colombo, Geneva, Ghent, Heidelberg, Hong Kong, Little Meris, London, Madrid, New York, Paris, Potsdam, Schaffhausen, Singapore, Tokyo, Vienna, and Wilhelmsfeld, just to cite sum. Rizal's travels also unwittingly spawned an industry eager to literally follow in his footsteps. A number of places that Rizal visited have since been documented and organized as heritage trails or even themed travel tours in Germany, Australia, and Switzerland. Further, many of the pictures in this video were called from image-hosting websites used by the online community to share photographs of their travels, both personal and professional. Monuments concretize the presence of Rizal and in lieu of overt Philippine symbols like the flag, likewise embodied the nation itself. Thus, for the would-be pilgrim, a photo opportunity with these Rizal monuments served as a souvenir of one's journey and, paradoxically, the preposition that one is not really far from home. Installing markers and monuments in foreign lands entailed close ties with the host countries. Given his extensive travels, Rizal fortitiously furnished ready links for bilateral relations and sister-city agreements. For instance, Rizal was the first Filipino physician to practice in Germany. As of 2008, there were 15,000 Filipino physicians, nurses, and midwives. Similarly, cultural cooperation was an adjunct during the bilateral political consultation between the Philippines and the Czech Republic convened last March 2007. It echoed the strong friendship between Rizal and Ferdinand Blumentritt. All these binotes to him, Rizal further served as a conduit between the Philippines and countries he never visited, including Andorra, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Indonesia, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Peru, and Venezuela. The Rizal busts and statues in Latin America in particular demonstrated how bilateral relations transcended the limits of Rizal's travels. Although his foreign visits provided an initial and expedient linkage to other countries, they were not necessary conditions. However, ascribing the erection of Rizal statues and plaques as commemorative rituals and as forms of state diplomacy cannot fully account for the many that had risen in places with no direct links with Rizal. Just opposing places with multiple Rizal monuments, with the Filipino diaspora revealed a striking correspondence. Concurrent with the increase of Rizal memorials is the exponential growth and dispersal of the Philippine population. In 1896, the year of Rizal's execution, there were an estimated 6.2 million Filipinos. The population stood at 8.8 million when his monument at the Viluneta was unveiled in 1913. This tripled to 27 million by his birth centenary in 1961. During his death centenary in 1996, Filipinos numbered about 70 million. By Rizal's birth sesagisimpennial in 2011, there were more than 92 million Filipinos. Although ranked 73rd in terms of total area, the Philippines is the 12th most populated country. As of December 2013, more than 10 million Filipinos lived or worked outside the Philippines. The notion that Filipinos are found in every country has some veracity, with 239 countries and territories identified to Filipinos in 2008. Filipinos abroad, nearly half of whom are permanent in status, constitute about 10% of the Philippine population. The countries with the most number of permanent Filipinos likewise have the most number of Rizal busts and statues, to it, the US, Canada, and Australia. Moreover, unlike the next countries with multiple Rizal memorials like Spain, Germany, France, and the Czech Republic, Canada and Australia were never visited by Rizal, who also spent less than three weeks in the US. Hence, the presence of permanent migrants increases the likelihood of a Rizal memorial, even without the context of a Rizal visit to that country. These bespeak of the growing presence, if not influence of these Filipino communities. For instance, at the unveiling of the Rizal Street marker in Campoldown, Australia, Consul General Lazaro noted, this is an important statement that proves that their contribution to Australian nation-building have become a part of Australia's history and legacy. Thus, the proliferation of Rizal monuments not only tagged Philippine history in other countries, but inscribed space and identity to overseas Filipinos. Filipino migrants responded to Rizal because his experience in foreign cities was likewise a study in alienation and an essay in the Consulations of Human Purpose.