2011 - Dec. 7 - 70th Anniversary Memorial at Pearl Harbor

We had the alarm set for 5:30AM so we could catch the 6:15 shuttle to Pearl Harbor, but since our body clocks were still on Illinois time, we were up long before the alarm sounded. So we went downstairs and had a little breakfast before boarding the shuttle. We got to Pearl Harbor at about 7:15 and were on time for the beginning of the Memorial Ceremony. There were about 3,000 people there, including about 122 survivors of the attack. At 7:55, exactly 70 years since the first ship in the harbor was attacked, four F122 Raptors flew the "missing man" formation over the harbor.

There were speeches and prayers given by several dignitaries, including the acting governor/lieutenant governor of Hawaii, Secretary of the Navy, Commander of the Pacific Fleet, President and Vice President of the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association, and a representative of the Japanese government. We learned that, due to the age and dwindling number of their members, the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association will be dissolve on December 31, 2011. The ceremony ended at 9:30 after which we got on a bus to go to Ford Island for a tour of the battleship U.S.S. Missouri.

As we know, the Japanese and allied forces signed the instruments of surrender aboard the Missouri in Tokyo Harbor, ending World War II. At that time, there were over 250 US and allied ships in the harbor, the largest display of naval forces ever assembled. The Missouri was commissioned and decommissioned several times to serve in WWII, Korea, Viet Nam and Desert Storm. It was the last battleship used by the US Navy as the aircraft carrier took over as the supreme fighting ship of the Navy. After touring the Missouri, it was back on the bus to go back to the Pearl Harbor visitor center for a 1:00PM movie and short boat ride to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial. I think the pictures speak for themselves.

About 2:30, we started the 1 1/2 mile walk back to the shuttle pick-up point to catch the 2:50 ride. We just made it. If we hadn't, the next pick-up would have been at 3:50. Back at the hotel, we walked around the corner to the ABC Store and bought some groceries, the most important of which was a 2 liter bottle of wine. After relaxing on the balcony, we went down to the beach to watch the 70th Anniversary Memorial Parade, which included several of the survivors of the attack. The Grand Marshall was a survivor, and walked briskly along the entire parade route!

Dinner after the parade and back to the room ...... and sleep. Another long day.

We found a Mickey D's about a block from the hotel - Free WiFi!

2011 - Dec. 6 - St. Louis to Honolulu

Yesterday, we had an uneventful drive from home to the Comfort Inn - St. Louis Airport. We did the Park-n-Fly thing because we would have had to get up way too early to make our our 9:00AM flight time if we had left from home this morning. Besides, in total, it's cheaper than parking at the airport!

So, we were at the airport this morning at 6:45 and at our gate at 7:05. Plenty of time! They wanted to passengers to take the 8:00 flight to Dallas instead of the 9:00, so we actually left an hour earlier than planned. What the heck - sit and wait in St. Louis or sit and wait in Dallas.

We arrived in Dallas with plenty of time to get to our gate, check out some shops, and eat lunch before boarding our 1:00PM flight. We landed in Honolulu at about 5:15PM, 9:15 Illinois time. After the 30 minute ride to the hotel, it was dark, so we did a little exploring in the neighborhood, had dinner at one of Wolfgang Puck's places, and checked out the beach before hitting the sack about 10:30.

Long day!

BTW, the hotel charges $16.95 per day or $6.95 per hour for WiFi Internet access. We'll be finding a McDonald's!