When I started typing this and in the process of naming this Word Document, my fat fingers mistakenly typed Peril Harbor.
That is not far from the truth, but more on that later.
Yesterday we were in Honolulu. Anyone that has been to Hawaii will tell you not to judge the entire state (or the island of Oahu for that matter) by the city of Honolulu. Make no mistake about it, Honolulu is a city, with all of the requisite aspects of one. There are tall skyscrapers, both commercial and condos, freeways, bad sections, homeless, (and Walmart’s!)
But…. mixed into all of this Urbaneness are other signs of where you really are….. palm trees, gorgeous skies, incredible florals, lush old volcanic formed mountains, and everyone (except me) was attired in a Hawaiian shirt! The buildings downtown were really quite nice, their design and architecture were just unique enough to warrant noticing.
We were on an excursion that was entitled, Pearl Harbor, National Cemetery of the Pacific, and City Highlights. By now (but it was too late) we have learned that anything with “Highlights” in the title is the one that attracts the Geriatric Parade of Ambulatory Assisting Mobility Devices. But it was too late to change anything so we steeled ourselves, gritted our teeth and prepared for the worst.
Some Hawaiian deity must have been smiling down on our tour because we found ourselves in a small bus with only one lady with a scooter and she was a “non-issue.”
When we boarded the ship, we received a letter in our stateroom announcing that this tour unfortunately did no longer include an opportunity to take the boat out into the harbor to visit the USS Arizona Memorial. We heard all sorts of rumors about the Navy needing to cut back on the amount of people allowed to visit because the Memorial needed maintenance, and other such rumors. This came as a major blow as an opportunity to visit this memorial is quite special. We were also informed that our visit to the National Cemetery of the Pacific would be just a drive-through experience. This cemetery is just like visiting Arlington or Gettysburg and being able to walk around and see the giant mosaics depicting the significant Battles of the Pacific during WWII is one of the highlights of a visit.
This was not shaping up to be worthwhile time. I felt badly for Paula who had never been here. We disembarked our Giant Van/ Small Bus at Pearl Harbor and after going trough Security we found ourselves gathered around our Tour Guide who handed out tickets to the boat that takes you out to the USS Arizona Memorial.
And it departed in a half hour! You can usually wait up to two hours for your turn to take the ride out there!
By now I am thoroughly perplexed for all the right reasons, and I wasn’t secure until we actually went through the line and had our QR coded tickets beeped “green”.
If you have ever had the opportunity to visit this particular Memorial You know to what I am about to speak. Unfortunately, if you have never had this opportunity there are no words that will adequately express the feelings and emotions that accompany this experience. I will say that the folks that were there did display the correct amount of respect and dignity befitting an experience of this nature. There were no kids running around (but they were there), no “selfies”, but photography is allowed, and everyone spoke in whispers and hushed voices. And I am in tears just writing this.
This Memorial spans the hull of the Arizona which suffered an incredibly devastating bombing on December 7, 1941, during this now infamous attack. An aerial bomb made a precise, direct, hit on her forward powder magazine that held several thousand tons of ordinance at the time. There was no warning, no second chance for these sailors.
Consequently, the hull of the Arizona became their final resting place.
 One Thousand One Hundred Seventy-Seven brave souls are entombed in the hull, just beneath the waves of Pearl Harbor. The fuel and oil from her fuel bunkers still floats up and give a rainbow sheen effect to the waters just above the hull.
Maybe a “Rainbow” is somehow fitting?
A stay out on the Memorial only lasts about ten minutes as the next launch arrives to unload its passengers and pick us up. Back on land we watched a special film narrated by Stockard Channing who’s somewhat distinctive raspy voice was a perfect choice as the narrator.
Back on the bus, sans two very late tourmates, (we don’t know their fate, only that the Driver was given permission to leave them behind) we proceeded on the rest of our tour. First destination was the “Punchbowl”, one of the names associated with the Memorial Cemetery because it is located within the crater of a long extinct volcano.
We then proceeded to the nice downtown area that includes old government buildings from back when Hawaii was its own country, then a territory, and finally our youngest state. A statue of King Kamehameha I, the fellow that united the Hawaiian Islands in 1810 after hundreds of years of infighting, is prominently displayed in front of the state Supreme Court.
When the tour was completed, we were deposited back at our ship. Thankfully the day turned out far better than I had anticipated!
On to Kauai!
10 replies on “Oahu”
Thank you for sharing such a reflecting moment!
Thanks Kath, its worth the trip 🙂
Thank you for bring Hawaii to us on this snowy day and reminding us of all we have to be thankful for, especially those who gave up their lives for us.
You are welcome Elaine, it’s all part of the Paula and Don Vicarious Travel Service!
Sounds like you are really enjoying yourselves. I enjoy taking the trip with you through your posts. Thanks for sharing. ❤️
Thanks for coming along with us! You should probably go and get ready for dinner soon, it’s Formal Night!
❤️
SO glad you were able to see the Arizona !
Very well written!! I hope to visit there someday as well!
No worries! You’ll get there!