Friday's excursion was to Pearl Harbor. We were there 6 years ago but wanted to go again. They have completely remodeled the whole place since we were there — they tore down buildings and replaced everything. It is such a moving experience. We arrived there about 7:00 a.m. and had to wait for it to open. Once inside we were handed phones and headsets — very cool — the displays had numbers and you just pushed the numbers on the phone and you could hear all about the display. We were in one building looking at the displays and all of a sudden I heard the Star Spangled Banner — I went outside to see what was happening. It was being played over the loud speaker on the military base — it was 8:00 a.m. I stood there listening with tears running down my face — wow — what a feeling. Thank you to all who have served our country in any capacity — whether you have been sent to other countries or if you've stayed in the states to work on equipment or office jobs. What our military service people do for us each and every day is definitely felt when you go to Pearl Harbor.
This plaque is in front of the USS Arizona anchor
This is the USS Arizona Memorial as we are being taken over to the memorial.
When we were here six years ago everyone was quiet as you got off the boat and stepped on to the memorial. This time was not quite the same — there was much more talking amoung people — I liked the respect and somber feeling six years ago. This is truly a moving experience. We head home today — it has been a fabulous trip but it is time to go home.