2019-05-04: Pearl Harbor and More Rain

Our children hate us and woke us up at 6:15am again this morning. We got ourselves cleaned up and headed to a restaurant called Zippy’s for breakfast on our way to Pearl Harbor. While we were eating, the rain clouds arrived and it started to pour again. We realized we hadn’t brought our rain jackets with us so after breakfast we drove back to the hotel to pick them up. We also discovered the kids didn’t bring their jackets so we picked up a couple of poncho’s at the nearby general store.

Once we were geared up appropriately, we made our way to Pearl Harbor.
It was about a 30 minute drive. We made one wrong turn and ended up at the military checkpoint for Ford Island. They confiscated Darrell’s drivers license while we turned the car around. Once we were on our way out, they returned the license and gave us directions on how to get to the visitor’s center. We arrived at 10:30am. By the time we got there the rain was letting up a bit. We redeemed our reservation for tickets. The USS Arizona Memorial had an issue with the dock so was closed to visitors. We knew this but they are running boats around the memorial area and along battleship row instead. Unfortunately, due to the weather, these boat tours were also cancelled for the day which was very disappointing. We went through the museums on land and saw the 25 minute video they show before you head to the boat tour.

We grabbed a bite to eat at the snack shack and then headed to the shuttle bus that takes you to Ford Island. It’s about a 10 minute drive to the island. At this point the rain had mostly stopped. The first stop was the USS Missouri. The USS Missouri is a WWII battleship that was built after Pearl Harbor was bombed. It is the ship where Japan signed the paperwork to officially surrender. She was decommissioned in 1955 after fighting in the Korean War. She was reactivated and modernized in 1984 and fought in Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. She was decommissioned for the last time in 1992 and was donated to Pearl Harbor in 1998. The USS Missouri was the last active battleship in the world when she was decommissioned in 1992.

After exploring the USS Missouri, we made our way back to the shuttle bus which took us to the Pacific Aviation Museum. There are two hangers full of various air force aircraft. One of the hangars still has bullet holes from the attack on Pearl Harbor.

We boarded the shuttle bus back to the visitor’s center and boarded the USS Bowfin which is a WWII submarine. It is definitely tight quarters! We were able to see the torpedo tubes, bridge, engine room, sleeping quarters, and kitchen. Darrell whacked his head going through one of the tiny doors and will have a nice mark for the rest of the trip.

Michael really enjoyed all the sights at Pearl Harbor. Patrick was quite a bit less interested and eager to find a beach. We left Pearl Harbor around 4:00 and headed back to the hotel. Amanda had to put together a quote for a client so Darrell and the kids changed and headed to Waikiki Beach. The kids rolled around in the waves for about 45 minutes before returning to the hotel to get ready for dinner.

We walked over to Marukame Udon for dinner. It is a place our Scouting buddy, George, had recommended the night before. They make the noodles by hand as you watch. There is a constant 30 minute line of people waiting to get in. We waited our turn in the line and enjoyed some soup and tempura before returning to the hotel.

Darrell headed to the airport to return the rental car before catching a cab ride back to the hotel. That was the end of our excitement for the day. Tomorrow we board the cruise ship!