Official Tourists

Sometimes it’s nice to take a break from driving and let someone else lead the way.  Thursday was our day to be official tourists.

We signed up for a tour of Pearl Harbor through our hotel.  The boys were not expecting the very large tour bus that pulled up in front of our hotel at 9:00am.

The tour actually started in downtown Honolulu at the State Capital building.  The driver told all sorts of stories about the Hawaiian government and the history of how the islands were originally governed by a monarchy.  Hawaii is the only place in the United States that ever had a palace with a Queen.  We’ll get back to this topic tomorrow.

We also learned that the Royal Palm Tree is a very special tree and is only planted in very special places.  Then, as if planned by the tour, this Royal Palm was delivered on a large flat bed to right where we were stopped.

In the heart of downtown is the King Kamehameha I statue. 

The plaque on the King Kamehameha I monument reads:

Thomas Ridgeway Gould
King Kamehameha I
Bronze, 1883

King Kamehameha I (c. 1758-1819) is generally recognized as the most important figure in Hawaiian history. He was a wise ruler who enacted laws to protect the defenseless and to bring order to a newly united kingdom. An astute statesman, he encouraged foreign trade and the use of foreign technology, while avoiding foreign rule. His greatest achievement, through warfare and diplomacy, was the unification of the Hawaiian Islands.

As befits a man of enormous historic and symbolic importance, this statue depicts King Kamehameha I wearing the regalia of an ali'i nui(paramount chief or king) which includes the mahiole (feathered helmet), the 'ahu'ula (a long feathered cloak signifying chiefly rank), and the ka 'ei kapu o Liloa (the sacred sash of Liloa; a feathered sash, worn around the waist and over the shoulder, a symbol of supreme authority). He carries the ihe laumeki (barbed spear) in his left hand to symbolize his life as a brave warrior. He extends his right hand in a welcoming gesture of aloha to denote his life as a wise and just statesman and unifier of a people and a kingdom.

For those of you that are more interested in pop culture facts, the building behind me is the headquarters of the new version of the TV show “Hawaii 5-0”

Oh, and for those of you who think that Hawaii is an island paradise with secluded beaches and tropical locations, this is what you see pretty much everywhere in Honolulu (and this was 10:00am on a Thursday):

We made it to Pearl Harbor just in time for our 11:00am tickets to the Battleship Arizona.  We watched a 25 minute movie about December 7, 1941.  The movie had amazing footage from that day, including actual footage of the Battleship Arizona exploding. 

Then it was boarding the boat for the trip out to the floating platform above the sunken ship.

On the way out to the Arizona, you pass the Battleship Missouri.  The Missouri was launched on Jan. 29, 1944, and commissioned on June 11, 1944. She was assigned to the Pacific Third Fleet and steamed into Pearl Harbor on Christmas Eve, 1944.

The USS Missouri was part of the force that carried out bombing raids over Tokyo and provided firepower in the battles of Iwo Jima and Okinawa. During the war’s final month, the “Mighty Mo” served as Admiral William “Bull” Halsey’s flagship for the Pacific Third Fleet.

The Missouri secured its place in history as the site of Japan’s unconditional surrender to the Allied Forces on Sept. 2, 1945, ending World War II. The ceremony for the signing of the Formal Instrument of Surrender was conducted by Supreme Allied Commander, General Douglas A. MacArthur.  It’s very fitting that the ship that ended the war sits in the harbor where the war started.

We chose to skip the tour of the Missouri.  It added about three hours to the overall tour and meant that we would be picked up at 6:00am instead of 9:00am.  Something to add to the list already started for next time.

The Arizona Memorial is a very beautiful, haunting place.  Being out in the harbor, away from everything else, it’s so quiet standing on the platform.

As strange as it sounds, I think that because the whole memorial is white, it’s extremely peaceful.

The boys didn’t fool me at all.  They were loving playing the tourist.  Every time I turned around, they were hanging out with the bus driver, asking all sorts of questions.

Meanwhile, Scott was busy getting a stamp in his National Park Passport.  He was pretty proud that he remembered to bring it this time.

We weren’t sure if we should smile and act like we were having a good time, or look solemn.  This conversation actually caused everyone to smile even more.

We had fun playing the tourists and it was nice letting someone else do the driving.  This was the only day on the trip that we did not spend time in our rental car.