The internal time clock that I function by has seemingly abandoned me. I have been awake, very uncharacteristically of me, at 7:00 am. However, this meant that by the time we had to go to the Aloha Landing to catch our tour bus, I was very ready to go.
A hazelnut latte in hand, I watched as tour buses came and went. Or came and stayed. Japanese was spoken in a frenzied rush, and an Asian male, with navy blue suit, black loafers and man purse slung cross shoulders scurried past people to fling paperwork at various drivers. There didn’t seem to be any logic to it. He didn’t run, nor did he walk. He moved his feet really really fast without bending his knees. After 30 minutes of this, I was in stitches laughing inside my head. The tour bus? Well, it was late thanks to the Aloha Marathon.
Once we were on a bus, we drove around the hotels and picked up more folk. We drove around some more and then had to switch buses. Then finally we were onto the destination of the day, Pearl Harbour. It wasn’t the most cheerful of destinations, but I think it is important to reflect on all aspects of a culture and since Hawaii is 1/3 military in population, I thought it would serve me well as a tour. We toured with Cousin Ben. He was a hoot with his running commentary and bad jokes.
On arrival, we went to the USS Bowfin and did the audio tour. That was well done as it had one set of numbers for the children and another set for the adults. I really enjoyed it, and honestly, I think it was the best part. From there, we legged it to the theatre for the movie and then were herded to the memorial. You really don’t get much chance to reflect on the history as they seem to think you should. I would like to have felt that I did the memorial justice but there were too many people, with too many modern day stories and interruptions to really feel like you were acknowledging the historical impact of what the Arizona stands for. However, I am glad I went. The girls also seemed to get something out of it. Then, it was a skim for food and drink (you can’t bring anything with you), and a skim through the galleries and then back to the bus. We were the last aboard but two. Oops. And he left people behind. Oops again.
 |
| USS Bowfin |
 |
| The USS Battleship Arizona |
 |
| Oil still leaking from the ship |
 |
| Reality |
 |
| The Punch Bowl as seen from the bus |
 |
| Hawaii 5 0 anyone? |
The bus tour then drove us all over Honolulu to point out landmarks and places of interest before depositing us back at our hotel. The girls had been dying for a trolley ride, so we found the free one and went for a ride. We shopped for a bit and then waited for a shuttle. Lots of time is available to bond with your fellow traveller while waiting for transport that runs on Island time. Today’s batch were from Barrhead and were delightful.
This evening was shopping and dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. Yummy, but I think I should have packed larger clothes. I have never seen portions this big. Well, ever. So, I am nursing my sunburn and have to be up for whale watching in the morning. And so, good night.
No comments:
Post a Comment