A Visit to the Cows of Marikina Heights' Evolution Park

Some years ago, before the pandemic, my parents brought us to a public park that has statues of cows. My Little Ones, Samuel and Samantha were happy "playing" with the cows.

So, during our Christmas visit to my parents, we decided to bring our three Little Ones, once again, to the cows of Marikina Heights.

Our youngest child was overjoyed upon seeing the "cows". He immediately ran up to them while saying "moo moo moo".

There are plenty of cows in this part of Marikina.

The cow statues recall Marikina's past as a hacienda of the rich and influential Tuason Family during the Spanish Period. Marikina Heights, the barangay where the park is located, was once a ranch where the Tuasons pastured cows, goats, carabaos, and horses.

The highlight of the park is the statue of a lady milking a cow. It marked Marikina's past as a major player in the dairy industry. In fact, the city's Marikina Dairy Industries was the first to introduce condensed milk in the Philippine market in 1967.

The park is located beside a creek along Champagnat Avenue. This park is named Evolution Park, which I found unusual because I cannot find the park's connection with "evolution".

My little ones enjoyed "playing" with the cows and riding on them. Our bunso is the most happy because it is as if he was interacting with real cows.

Near the cow statues are the public exercise equipment like the monkey bars and static bikes.

These are not meant for kids but our Little Ones enjoyed them nonetheless.

The real playground is located a few steps away at the Marikina Hardin ng Bayan. This was where our kids enjoyed the slides.

We didn't stay long at the playground because it was very crowded. There were so many kids competing for the slides and swings. It was quite risky in this time of pandemic. I think the Marikina City government should add more slides and swings or make more playgrounds in other parts of the city.

As a history buff, what piqued my interest in Marikina's Evolution Park is the monument dedicated to the PEFTOK soldiers.

PEFTOK, which is the acronym for Philippine Expeditionary Forces to Korea, are the Filipino soldiers who fought in the Korean Peninsula to stop the advance of communist forces to South Korea.

The PEFTOK Monument was erected through the efforts of PEFTOK Veterans, the City Government of Marikina, and other organizations on June 25, 2005 - exactly 55 years since the start of the Korean War. The monument was placed to commemorate the officers and men of PEFTOK and to memorialize their bravery in their defense of the democracy of South Korea.

The monument was placed in Marikina City because it was the training ground of the PEFTOK soldiers before they were sent to Korea.

The monument bears the flags of the nations that joined the fight against the communists in the Korean Peninsula. Some of the nations I recognized are South Korea, Greece, India, USA, UK, Australia, New Zealand, France and the Scandinavian countries of Sweden, Norway, and Denmark.

The monument also featured the following the following Combat Battalion Teams (BCT) of PEKTOK:

1. 14th BCT (Avengers)

2. 2nd BCT (Peacemakers)

3. 19th BCT (Bloodhounds)

4. 20th BCT (We Lead)

5. 10th BCT (Steady On)

There are interesting historical tidbits written on the monument. One is that President Fidel Ramos, then a first lieutenant, also fought in the Korean War.

The PEFTOK soldiers, particularly the 10th BCT, became legendary during the Battle of Yultong where 900 PEFTOK soldiers fought around 2,000 to 5,000 Chinese and North Korean soldiers.

Soldiers of 10th BCT at Yultong Hill (source: Wikipedia)

The Battle of Yultong started in the evening of April 22, 1951. The 10th BCT is guarding Yultong Hill with the soldiers of USA, Turkey, Puerto Rico, Belgium, and UK. During the intense fight, the soldiers of other countries retreated while the 10th BCT stood their ground. In the end, the 10th BCT defeated the commie horde and prevented them from going further to South Korea.

Aside from the PEFTOK, Evolution Park also features the flags of the Philippine Revolution.

The Evolution Park is one of the reasons why I considered moving to Marikina. This city has public parks and open space. The residents are disciplined. Their streets are clean.

This pales in comparison to the city in the supposedly more provincial Laguna, where I currently reside. This city lacks a public park, save for the concreted plaza at the poblacion. The nearest open space from our house is a private cemetery. The wide open spaces are owned by the Ayalas. The residents are burara and dugyot. The streets are dirty. Heck, even the city highway has few decent sidewalks.

I digress...but what I really want is a city with a decent public park and Marikina is a model for that.

My Little Ones enjoyed their short visit to the cows of Evolution Park. It reminded me of the fun I had, when I was little, running in wide open spaces in our province. We were free to run around, fly a kite, and do many things. Now my kids had to make do with a small space in our subdivision.

As for me, I enjoyed learning more about the history of gallant Filipino soldiers who fought in Korea and their Marikina connection. This blog post was actually meant to be about the cow statues of Marikina but ended up as another blog post about Philippine history.

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Notes:

1. Information about the Battle of Yultong came from Remembering the Battle of Yultong: A Great Victory (Philippine Army website) and Wikipedia.

2. Information about the dairy industry in Marikina came from the National Dairy Authority.

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