Mediterranean Sea
7 July 1887
My dear Friend,
Here you have your friend far from his beloved Europe! Tomorrow we shall leave the Mediterranean and we shall pass through the Canal. Adieu, Europe!
When I embarked at Marseille and the ship left the port, I had such sad thoughts that I felt tears welling in my eyes! I was all alone and nobody bade me farewell. I saw the coasts slowly disappearing and the beautiful country of my liberty moved away as if enveloped in mist. When I wanted to look through my field glasses to shorten the distance from the land, I discovered that they have been stolen. This lessened slightly my pain because in looking for them I and the cabin boys were kept busy for almost an hour. You see how a pecuniary loss can relegate to second place a sentimental pain! I’m sure that if at the time of her departure from France, Mary Stuart’s most beautiful dress had been burnt, at that moment she would have forgotten beautiful France.
We are about 50 passengers, many Frenchmen, 4 Englishmen, 2 Germans, 3 Chinese, 2 Japanese, and I. There is a fair number of women and children (perhaps rats also). The ship has electric light, which is very convenient. I speak German and Italian with the Japanese, one having been in Italy and the other in Berlin. With the Chinese I speak in English. One of the Germans is a young man from Schwerin whose name is Fentz and is going with me to Manila. He loaned me this paper because I had none at hand.
I sleep on deck, I listen to music, and I play chess. I speak all their languages.
I embrace you, I kiss the children, and I greet fondly the elders.
Yours,
Rizal
03-249 [Reformists]