Friday, January 06, 2006
Pearl Harbor
On our second full day on Oahu we went to Pearl Harbor and toured the Arizona Memorial. We got a late start and were worried that there would be really long lines as we had heard that even though it was free to get in, you could wait anywhere for 1-3 hours to get your ticket. A bellman at our hotel got us a shuttle out to the Harbor (we shared it with another couple from Concord, CA, their son and a woman from Japan).
Pearl Harbor Visitor's Center
We arrived around 11:30am and were surprised to see there was NO LINE! We got our tickets (each ticket had a group number on it; we were group 20) and were told to meet at the theater at 12:25pm for the short film and then the quick Navy boat ride to the Arizona Memorial. On the back of each ticket was a photo and the story of someone who was killed during the attack. My ticket had details about the first Mexican-American killed in WWII.
We spent the hour waiting for our tour by grabbing a quick bite to eat at the sparse concession stand and touring the free museum. They had photos and memorabilia from those killed during the attack, as well as a Japanese torpedo that was found years later in the harbor.
Pearl Harbor "Battleship Row" Under Attack - Actual Photo from Japanese Plane. (U.S.S Arizona is ship on top right.)
We knew when it was our turn because they made an announcement over a loud speaker for those with ticket number 20 to line-up outside the theater. The short film showed footage from the actual attack in 1941 as well as events leading up to the attack and the deteriorating Japan/U.S. relationship. Then we boarded the Navy boat and headed out to the Arizona Memorial.
U.S.S Arizona Memorial
The actual USS Arizona battleship rests on the bottom of the ocean in Pearl Harbor. It's clearly visible from the surface and many parts of the ship are sticking up out of the water.
Parts of Sunken U.S.S. Arizona
The memorial runs perpendicular to the sunken ship, intersecting it at the Arizona midsection. The back of the memorial has a marble wall with the over 1,100 names of those who perished that "day of infamy". It was a moving experience to see all of those names and actually know that many of those men were still inside the ship below our feet.
U.S.S Memorial Wall of Names
Our shuttle driver on the way back to the hotel was full of information and facts about Oahu and the Hawaiian people. He was pretty entertaining.
That night we got lazy and just went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. While we waited for our table we strolled out to the beach and sat on the sand watching the sunset. It was beautiful. After dinner we strolled around Kuhio street people watching again, then went to bed as we had a big day at the Polynesian Cultural Center the next day.
~ Christina
Next Hawaii January 1-15, 2006 Post:
January 4 Polynesian Cultural Center
Pearl Harbor Visitor's Center
We arrived around 11:30am and were surprised to see there was NO LINE! We got our tickets (each ticket had a group number on it; we were group 20) and were told to meet at the theater at 12:25pm for the short film and then the quick Navy boat ride to the Arizona Memorial. On the back of each ticket was a photo and the story of someone who was killed during the attack. My ticket had details about the first Mexican-American killed in WWII.
We spent the hour waiting for our tour by grabbing a quick bite to eat at the sparse concession stand and touring the free museum. They had photos and memorabilia from those killed during the attack, as well as a Japanese torpedo that was found years later in the harbor.
Pearl Harbor "Battleship Row" Under Attack - Actual Photo from Japanese Plane. (U.S.S Arizona is ship on top right.)
We knew when it was our turn because they made an announcement over a loud speaker for those with ticket number 20 to line-up outside the theater. The short film showed footage from the actual attack in 1941 as well as events leading up to the attack and the deteriorating Japan/U.S. relationship. Then we boarded the Navy boat and headed out to the Arizona Memorial.
U.S.S Arizona Memorial
The actual USS Arizona battleship rests on the bottom of the ocean in Pearl Harbor. It's clearly visible from the surface and many parts of the ship are sticking up out of the water.
Parts of Sunken U.S.S. Arizona
The memorial runs perpendicular to the sunken ship, intersecting it at the Arizona midsection. The back of the memorial has a marble wall with the over 1,100 names of those who perished that "day of infamy". It was a moving experience to see all of those names and actually know that many of those men were still inside the ship below our feet.
U.S.S Memorial Wall of Names
Our shuttle driver on the way back to the hotel was full of information and facts about Oahu and the Hawaiian people. He was pretty entertaining.
That night we got lazy and just went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner. While we waited for our table we strolled out to the beach and sat on the sand watching the sunset. It was beautiful. After dinner we strolled around Kuhio street people watching again, then went to bed as we had a big day at the Polynesian Cultural Center the next day.
~ Christina
Next Hawaii January 1-15, 2006 Post:
January 4 Polynesian Cultural Center
# posted by Christina @ 8:39 PM 
