Today marked our first full day of sight-seeing and our last full day on Oahu.  An early start saw us boarding a tour bus at 6:20 AM headed for a trip and tour of the USS Arizona Memorial.  Designed for less than a million visitors a year, the memorial is visited by some 3.5 million people each year.  Work is underway to accommodate the visitors, but waiting is definitely the name of the game.  Our tickets for catching the launch to the USS Arizona was for 9 AM and the time passed quickly as we saw a great film introducing the memorial, and very up front regarding Japanese aggression at the time.  It was interesting to note the high number of Japanese visitors, and wonder what they were thinking.  We took lots of photos, and saw and smelled the oil still leaking from the USS Arizona.

I shed a few tears of thanks for what the sailors, marines, and soldiers did to protect our freedom, and couldn’t help but think of my dad who was seriously wounded, both physically and emotionally, at Okinawa after being hit by friendly fire—and left for dead for two days before someone found him.
 
After our tour of Pearl Harbor, we visited Punch Bowl Crater, home of a large military cemetery.  It was quite impressive.  For those of you old enough to remember Ernie Pyle, he is buried there.

We were driven through Honolulu’s version of Chinatown on our way to the only royal palace in the US.  Many of Honolulu’s buildings and churches date to the early 1800s, and have been well preserved.  After lunch, we caught a taxi to Diamond Head, and climbed to the top of the now inactive crater.  The climb consisted of a paved trail, a gravel trail with many switchbacks, 200+ steps at a very steep angle, tunnels, and a very long spiral staircase, all rising some 700+ feet in elevation.

The views from the top were breathtaking.

After a brief rest, we hiked back down, caught a city bus to within a few blocks of the hotel, and rushed to the hot tub and pool for muscle relaxation.  It was a glorious day.

Kay’s Take:  I was somewhat disturbed that people didn’t behave in an appropriate manner at the Arizona Monument in Pearl Harbor.  The guide explained that it isn’t a tourist attraction; it is a cemetery – burial spot – a final resting place for over 1000 servicemen.  Some tourists (foreigners, to be exact) were climbing on torpedoes, etc. for picture making even tho signs all around warned not to get on or close to displays.  Of course, this was ignored.  Mostly by Oriental tourists.  Our bus guide said “Excuse me” to one of them; they didn’t move out of the middle of the walkway and he just said “Move” and they did.  Rudeness is very irritating.  I’m a softie and cried several tears at the displays about the lives lost at Pearl Harbor and WWII.   Plaques were displayed with the names of crew members lost on all military ships during WWII as well.  The large wall on the Arizona memorial was totally awe inspiring  – over 1000 names of those lost.  An additional 43 names have been added to the deceased since Pearl Harbor.  These are ‘survivors’ of the Arizona, who elected to have their ashes buried with the crew when they died.
I have a blister on my right foot – my little toe is rubbing against the next toe in my tennis shoes.  We took a taxi out to Diamond Head Park and hiked to the top for some magnificent views.  The hike was 1.6 miles round trip, climbing in elevation over 700 ft with at least 240 stairs to traverse.  We stopped and rested several times!  We made it and took some fabulous pictures.  Looking down below we could see the old volcano ‘bowl’ and the rim all around it.  When we got back to our hotel, Outrigger Reef Waikiki, we went to the hot tubs & spas to relax and soothe our weary legs.  On Friday nights, there is a fireworks display in Waikiki off the beach.  There was a much larger amount of people out tonight in Waikiki – of course, it’s the beginning of the weekend, and Friday night – it’s the place to go and be. re
We’re looking forward to getting on the cruise ship tomorrow.  We need some rest!! hehehe!