Sunday, April 13, 2025
I assumed that after the ordeal yesterday, we would wake up stiff and sore. We did not. However, Chuck woke up congested. There has been an uptick in coughing and sneezing around the ship. Luckily, I pack a mini-pharmacy for every trip. Time to break out the DayQuil.
We had arrived in Honolulu for our overnight visit.
We had a relaxed morning and an early pizza lunch at the New York Deli. Our plan today was to pay our respects at Pearl Harbor. There were many tours we could have taken there but we decided to take an Uber to and from the site and explore on our own.
In my opinion, you should have a reservation to go out to the USS Arizona. There is a stand-by area, but you are risking not visiting the memorial if no slots open up. For today’s visit, I got our tickets in January on the website Recreation.gov. I chose the 2:00 time slot.
We caught an Uber at the port at 12:30 and we arrived at the site before 1:00. That arrival gave us plenty of time to go to the restroom, walk through the displays, and watch a film describing the attack before our 2:00 reservation.
We had a slight hiccup before we went to the display area. I had gone into the little food mart to buy us a bottle of water. When I came out, I noticed that Chuck no longer had his ship’s keycard in his lanyard. On closer inspection of the holder, we could see a tear at the seam so it must have slipped out.
We weren’t sure if it had come out in the Uber or in the park. I suddenly remembered I had taken his photo outside of the park and, yes, he did have it then.
I told him we’d have to retrace our steps and hope for the best. So, we did.
Or at least he did. I did not follow him back into the men’s room. I thought it was a long shot, but he came out holding the card. Yes, it was in the urinal. Yes, he washed it thoroughly. No, he didn’t put it back in the lanyard. It went into a zipped pocket.
It would not have been a disaster if he hadn’t found it. I would have to go to ship security to have them come to the port entrance to verify that he could come back on the ship. Then we’d get another card at guest services. But it would have been annoying and time-consuming so I’m glad he beat the odds and found it.
Now we could wander through the exhibits without having that worry nag at us. For a small space, they had an impressive amount of artifacts.
Then we went into a theater to watch the film which included Roosevelt’s “Day in Infamy” speech. The film was sobering and heart-breaking.
Soon a serviceman could be heard announcing (bellowing) that the 2:00 tour should start lining up. We did as we were told and then presented our tickets before we entered the auditorium.
We listened to a park ranger explain the rules of visiting the Arizona. He also told a story about four friends from Detroit, all under the age of 18, who lied about their ages and joined the Navy. They were excited to go to Hawaii when they were stationed at Pearl Harbor – a great adventure for these city boys. Two survived and two died that day. Not many dry eyes in the auditorium.
It was a short boat ride over and the military personnel emphasized several times that we were visiting sacred ground and to not take photos as you entered the monument (you could take them once you entered and once you left) and to not post on social media while you were there. Once we exited the boat, a group at the memorial boarded the boat to go back to the pier.
We had plenty of time to contemplate what happened there and say a prayer for all those who lost their lives.
Once the next boat discharged its passengers, we took it back to the pier. We walked down the path toward the USS Bowfin. You can also tour it for a fee. We had accomplished what we had planned so we did not go to it.
We also did not tour the nearby USS Missouri although we talked to a number of people who did and were happy they did.
We walked back to the Uber pick up spot and we were back on the ship by 4:00.
We visited with people on the Sea View deck until almost 6:00. At that time, we headed for the world stage to watch a group of local singers and dancers perform some traditional music and dances. We enjoyed the show.
Afterwards, we opted to go eat in the Lido. When we finished, Chuck said his congestion was coming back. We called it another early night and hoped that the Nyquil would help.
Today was a special day. My deepest gratitude to all you men and women who have served and are serving to keep us free.
Tomorrow – Honolulu – Day 2