If you are planning a trip to Hawaii this December you have the chance to witness a ceremony you will likely never forget. December 7, 2006 marks the 65th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the United States’ entry into World War II. Statewide plans to mark the historic event are already underway. However, regardless of when you go, making the trip is worth the effort.
Pearl Harbor is Hawaii’s most popular tourist attraction drawing in more than 1.5 million visitors from around the world each year. It is home to the USS Arizona, the USS Utah, the Battleship Missouri and in 1999, the USS Missouri Memorial opened, further enhancing the importance of this historic area.
In the early morning hours of December 7, 1941 my American born Japanese grandmother was at work as a nurse at an army hospital on Oahu when the first wave of planes attacked the Pacific Fleet docked at Pearl Harbor. She witnessed first hand the swarms of Japanese aircraft that filled the Hawaiian sky. My grandfather, a second generation Japanese-American, born and raised in Hawaii was a member of the U. S. Army’s highly decorated 442nd Infantry 100th Battalion. So for me, a trip to Pearl Harbor has special meaning.
But, you don’t have to know someone who was on Oahu during the attack or who fought in World War II to appreciate what is being preserved at Pearl Harbor.
A visit provides entire families with a history lesson not to be forgotten. For those who were not alive when the attack occurred the Museum and Visitor Center provides a photo retrospective featuring oversized photographic murals showing the fury of the raging fires that burned for days along Battleship Row. In addition, there is a dramatic model of the Japanese aircraft carrier, IMS Akagi, flagship of the deadly attack force. Another model shows the USS Arizona as she appeared before the attack. There’s even the twisted metal remains of a Japanese torpedo that was headed towards Battleship Row before it got lodged in the ocean’s silt, saving perhaps hundreds of sailors from its massive blow of destruction.
Boat tours to the USS Arizona Memorial, which spans the mid-portion of the sunken battleship, run daily from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The memorial is a grave site for the 1177 men who lost their lives during the attack. It is designed to encourage quiet contemplation, and to remind us of the sacrifice that took place there. A visit to the Arizona Memorial is a solemn and sobering experience, especially when you see the oil droplets that still bubble to the surface of the water from the sunken vessel and further when you witness the marble wall bearing the engraved names of all those killed aboard the Arizona.
The best time of day to visit the Memorial remains early in the morning before the tour buses arrive. Allow about 90 minutes for the tour, which does not include time waiting for the boat ride to the USS Arizona (that could be up to two hours depending on the crowds). Security regulations prohibit you from bringing purses, handbags, camera bags, or diaper bags into the visitor center or on the boat tour. Cameras are allowed, minus their carrying cases. The center and the USS Arizona Memorial are free. However, a fee is charged for tours of the USS Missouri, which is also docked at the Pearl Harbor Naval Base. It was on the USS Missouri that representatives of the allied nations and Japan signed the document of surrender. The USS Missouri Memorial is a not-for-profit venture, which receives no public financing. Before visiting Pearl Harbor consult the National Park Service website.