Before today’s adventures…

We started our day fueled up on coffee, frappes and pastries, and then hit the road for a 20-minute drive to Pearl Harbor. (Pro tip: bring a clear bag or only carry a wrist-size bag, and refillable water bottle. Leave everything else in the car). Of all the historic sites we have visited, Pearl Harbor may have been one of the most solemn. We have all heard our parents tell their tale of where they were when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, but to be here was incredibly serene.

We arrived around 9am and decided to watch the USS Arizona movie before our timed tickets out to the Arizona. The movie gave the details leading up to December 7, 1941 and did a great job (especially for some of my non-history people). We headed into another theater before loading the shuttle boat to the Arizona. This Park Ranger should be in Hollywood. He was awesome telling about the history and reverence of the Arizona (think a Morgan Freeman voice).

The sailors and Marines on the shuttles again made sure to remind everyone of the expected reverence of the Arizona. The best advice was to treat it like a national cemetery because for these hundreds of men, it is.

The concave design is to reflect the defeat and horror of the attack in the middle and then the rise of hope on the ends. Along the outside edge is the tree of life reflected in the missing stones.

The Arizona itself lays perpendicular to the Memorial. When the bombing began, a bomb from a Japanese plane went through the ship and ignited all of the ammunition and powder carried on the Arizona. The resulting explosions blew the entire USS Arizona 30 feet into the air. The large part sticking out is the third turret from the deck of the Arizona.

The back wall of the Arizona Memorial is a wall commemorating the names of all the men lost on the Arizona. It’s not flashy or show. Just a simple white wall with their names etched in black. There is also a section where those that survived the bombing may have their remains returned to the Arizona. When crew member is returned, one of the divers who takes the remains said that there seems to be a notable release as the remains are accepted back into the Arizona.

We were amazed that one of the three anchors from the Arizona, weighing over 19,000 pounds, was blown hundreds of feet away, and found in the harbor!

After we visited the USS Arizona, we picked up our audio tour equipment and started through the park. Stops along the way, gave the background, state of the world and espionage of the Japanese leading up to December 7th.

After the inside portion of the audio tour, we continued on the Walk of Remembrance around the perimeter of the park with views of the Arizona Memorial and the USS Missouri. The setting is beautiful, and we could easily imagine being here on a Sunday morning, and suddenly seeing those bombers coming over the mountains.

We had lunch by the water and then made our way to the USS Missouri, where the Japanese signed the letter of surrender to mark the end of the war.

The USS Missouri was very similar to the USS North Carolina in Wilmington. Our tour guide was retired Honor Guard from the Coast Guard and loved his job and history. And this guy was LOVING every minute of today and the tour.

The Missouri was truly impressive not just in sheer size but in their commemoration of the place of surrender. There were lots of extras that our tour guide pointed out along the way. For instance, up until this point, Japan had never surrendered so there was concern about what would happen. To ease tensions, General McArthur never told the Japanese to sign the documents, he invited them to sign – a sign of respect to the Japanese representatives. The Representative from Canada was blind in one eye, and accidentally signed under his signature line, instead of on the line. The 2 men standing behind General McArthur were POWs. Number 4 in the photo is John S. McCain – the father of Senator John McCain. Lots of subtle notes that you never learn in history but are just cool to discover.

This ship is kid-friendly (both big and small) so the boys loved exploring not just in decks but the inside including sleeping quarters, galleys, library, and even a dentist office. (Could you imagine getting a cavity filled while been thrown about at sea?!?!) There was even a law office and computer lab on board.

One of the coolest things we learned today was that to this day 60 enlisted Marines still reside on the Missouri ready to handle any issues or threats that may arise.

We treated ourselves to a few cold treats (it was hot on the ship), and goofed around with some cutout before heading back to the hotel.

We walked around Honolulu for a bit tonight trying to decide about dinner… no one wanted anything but everyone had something they didn’t want. 🤣 We ended up grabbing dinner at Maui Brewery where Leo and Mike had the greatest cheeseburgers of their lives! (or maybe they were just hungry from the walk around downtown.)

Tomorrow we are headed up to the North Shore for a little surfing and exploring, so feel free to say a prayer we don’t get rolled up in a wave!