On our second morning in Hawaii, we drove to Pearl Harbor and took the tour. The museum is excellent and extensive, with eye witness accounts, photos and recordings of the Japanese attack, and many mementos on display. Then we ferried over to the USS Arizona Memorial. It’s a solemn place, where you simply want to stand and contemplate what happened that morning in 1941.
Photo from the web
Part of the sunken ship
Oil Slick (the seeping oil represents the tears of the Arizona)
The names of the 1,177 sailors and marines who died on that day
Our Go Oahu Card included several museums and palaces on the island. We spent one afternoon at the Bishop Museum, learning about the Kings Kamehameha (five of them!) and the history of the royal families and their influence on the island people, and changes over the centuries. Bernice Bishop was an adopted descendant of Kamehameha II.
We visited the Iolani Palace and Queen Emma’s (wife to Kamehameha IV) Summer Palace. It was interesting to see the beautiful pieces of artwork, china, furniture and jewelry, some more than two centuries old. We arrived at Iolani too late to join the guided tour, but wandered through the basement museum. We did take the guided tour of Queen Emma’s Summer Palace, and even were asked to remove our shoes in one room with beautiful red carpeting.
Sperm Whale (On display in the Bishop Museum)
Hawaiian village model (Bishop Museum)
Feather Capes (Bishop Museum)
Thatch Hut (Bishop Museum)
China Hutch (Queen Emma’s)
Royal Crib (Queen Emma’s)
Feather Kahili
Here’s some information on the Kahili
All in all, we did learn a lot about the history of Hawaii, but please don’t quiz us on any of it!
Even with all the good food you and Glenda were so active that I’ll bet you never gained a pound. Glad you had such a good time!