A trip to Pearl Harbor (US spelling) was on the agenda for the day so, after breakfast near the pool, twenty-two of us got on the bus which first took us to explore the
Battleship Missouri Memorial. When we booked this excursion we were told that no bags were allowed and the driver checked for bags when we got on the bus. At the site the bus had to go through two cursory checkpoints before entering the area.
The
USS Missouri was commissioned on 11 June 1944 and took part in a number of battles in the Pacific. The ship is particularly significant as it was the location for the signing of the Japanese Surrender on 2 September 1945.
On arrival we passed the
memorial to the
USS Oklahoma, one of the many ships sunk in the harbour on 7 December 1941. The four hundred and twenty-nine crew who lost their lives that morning are represented by a white marble column.
The
USS Missouri is an imposing sight as you approach the ship walking first between two rows of American flags.
In front of the ship is a row of flags for each state in the United States.
A guide provided a history of the ship and went into great detail about the size and range of the guns and later weapons used on the ship during the First Gulf War.
We then saw the location on the deck of the ship where the Japanese Surrender was signed and heard more of the history of that event.
Replicas of the documents are on display nearby.
We were then free to explore sections of the ship and learn further of life aboard ship and the ship's history.
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| View of Pearl Harbour |
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| A submarine in Pearl Harbour today |
As we left the ship we had a view of the
Arizona Memorial that we would visit later in the day.
The USS Missouri was commissioned on 11 June 1944 and took part in a number of battles in the Pacific. The ship is particularly significant as it was the location for the signing of the Japanese Surrender on 2 September 1945.
On arrival we passed the memorial to the USS Oklahoma, one of the many ships sunk in the harbour on 7 December 1941. The four hundred and twenty-nine crew who lost their lives that morning are represented by a white marble column.
The USS Missouri is an imposing sight as you approach the ship walking first between two rows of American flags.
In front of the ship is a row of flags for each state in the United States.
A guide provided a history of the ship and went into great detail about the size and range of the guns and later weapons used on the ship during the First Gulf War.
We then saw the location on the deck of the ship where the Japanese Surrender was signed and heard more of the history of that event.
Replicas of the documents are on display nearby.
We were then free to explore sections of the ship and learn further of life aboard ship and the ship's history.
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