Hawaii--Part Two: Pearl Harbor

We decided to get up super early and take the very first tour at Pearl Harbor on Saturday.
We were still on Missouri time, so it seemed like it was 11 am already. 
I think I was most excited about this part of the trip, but it was nothing like I had imagined in my head.

If I had to pick a favorite war {too morbid?  sorry...}, I would pick World War II.  
It's my favorite to learn about.
So I enjoyed the history.

Looking out into the harbor

I found out that my Granny had a cousin who died on the USS Oklahoma.

His name was Walter R. Pentico, Sea2c

We watched a video with real footage from the actual bombing.
Then we took a boat out to the USS Arizona memorial.
In school, we had football coaches who taught American History.
Actually, the coach who taught freshman American History when I took it had other things on his mind, so he didn't teach much.
I never knew about any of this, so it was really great to learn.

The USS Arizona was hit so bad that it sunk straight into the harbor.
The men who were on the USS Arizona were all buried with her.
The memorial was built over the ship (width-wise) and has a wall of all the names.

Tree of Life

One thing I found odd is that the ship is still leaking oil...72 years later.

One end of the ship is where that buoy is out there.  The USS Missouri {which we unfortunately didn't get to tour} is in the background.

The other end of the ship is marked by that buoy.

They put markings where each ship was in the harbor.

That bridge is sinkable...should they need to hide it or get to the harbor.

USS Bowfi

Touring Pearl Harbor was very humbling.  So many families lost loved ones who were fighting for our freedom and protecting our nation.  It was definitely worth the visit, and I'm so glad we got to go.

We went with a tour group to Pearl Harbor, so when we were done, we also got a tour of the city.

We also got to visit Punchbowl Cemetary, where lots of men and women are buried from Pearl Harbor.

Come back tomorrow for more pictures from our trip!