Day 5 - Pearl Harbor

On our last day in Hawaii, we tried our best to sleep in before having our last breakfast buffet. We ate a TON this week - ugh.

After breakfast, we wandered around the International Marketplace (I bought a pair of earrings and R got a necklace) before heading over to Pearl Harbor to see the USS Arizona Memorial.

I was surprised by how moved I was by the tour which included watching a 20-minute documentary depicting the attack and a short boat ride to the memorial. Standing at the memorial overlooking the sunken ship, I was touched by the loss of life at that site and all the lives of the people that subsequently died throughout WWII.

I'm really glad we decided to visit the memorial and Pearl Harbor. . . I knew a little bit of the history but had no idea why Japan decided to bomb Pearl Harbor (a strategic move to cripple the US Naval fleet so that they could pursue their interests in the Dutch Indies and Burma - two regions rich with natural resources).

I also felt a sense of connection to my family history - my paternal grandfather was stationed at Pearl Harbor in the '30s.

This photo is of the flag, perpetually flown at half-mass in honor of those that died, over the memorial.

A few hours later, after killing a few hours at the mall, we dropped off our rental car and headed to the airport for the long flight home.