The American Cemetery Manila

The American Cemetery and Memorial in Fort Bonifacio is the final resting place for over 17,000 military personnel who lost their lives in World War Two during operations waged in the Far East. With almost twice the number of war dead as the US cemeteries in Normandy resulting from the D-Day landings in June 1944, it contains by far the largest number of graves commemorating U.S. fatalities from the Second World War. It is situated in a residential area on a huge expanse of land measuring 152 acres in total and the entire cemetery is officially recognised as sovereign territory of the USA.

The headstones are aligned in a circular formation and set among a variety of tropical trees and shrubs. A large white chapel at the cemetery's centre displays the history of the US armed conflict in the Pacific, as well as India, Burma and China. Over 36,000 names are also inscribed in the huge stone tablets, honouring those officially listed as missing in action whose bodies have never been found.

The cemetery is located within walking distance of the flat where I live, and like the Chinese cemetery downtown, it is one of the few places in Metro Manila which act as a sanctuary of tranquility. A walk through the American cemetery is evocative, thought-provoking and highly recommended.