I also made sure to photograph the piece of a tail of a Japanese "Kate" bomber that was downed during the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941.
However, my favorite part is the exhibit on the Medal of Honor recipients from Hawaii. This is located upstairs and really is quite impressive with the narratives for which the medal was awarded. 
From the museum we headed to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific usually called simply the Punchbowl cemetery. The cemetery is located in the old crater of an extinct volcano and was a sacred place for native Hawaiians long before it became a national cemetery in 1947. Many US servicemen/women remains were moved here from throughout the Pacific at the end of the war. Interesting, when the cemetery was established Hawaii was still not yet a state and so the cemetery was considered an "overseas" cemetery and administered by the American Battle Monuments Commission (just like the US Cemetery in Normandy I visited earlier in the summer); thus the layout and decor are reminiscent of those overseas cemeteries. However, the cemetery is now administered by Department of Veterans Affairs.
The cemetery contains the remains of many of the Japanese Americans who fought in the famous 442 in WWII and there is a memorial specifically for them. 
As you know if you have been reading this blog this summer, yes my odd streak remained intact; as we headed across part of the grounds, within 10 feet I came to the final resting place of a Texan! 
There were also some specific and interesting memorials on the grounds that I photographed. The reconciliation memorial here is quite special as it was placed here by US and Japanese veterans of WWII. 
And then I found one that reminded me of some old friends that I made back in 1994-95 when I chaired our campus year-long anniversary tribute to the 50th anniversary of WWII! We had a large contingent of retired navy guys who were part of our senior education folks on campus who came to almost every program and provided me some great contacts; they eventually adopted me into their group -- they are the Tin Can Sailors (those who served on destroyers for those who don't know navy jargon LOL). 
As you know if you have been reading this blog this summer, yes my odd streak remained intact; as we headed across part of the grounds, within 10 feet I came to the final resting place of a Texan! 
There were also some specific and interesting memorials on the grounds that I photographed. The reconciliation memorial here is quite special as it was placed here by US and Japanese veterans of WWII. 
And then I found one that reminded me of some old friends that I made back in 1994-95 when I chaired our campus year-long anniversary tribute to the 50th anniversary of WWII! We had a large contingent of retired navy guys who were part of our senior education folks on campus who came to almost every program and provided me some great contacts; they eventually adopted me into their group -- they are the Tin Can Sailors (those who served on destroyers for those who don't know navy jargon LOL). 
Now I will admit this is a beautiful location and there are many gorgeous views, however I still prefer the cemeteries that have headstones as I think they have a stunning visual impact on the visitor and remind one of the cost of war. 
After the moving time at the Punchbowl, we were off to Hickam Field - the Air Force Base on Oahu. We met Pearl Harbor survivors for lunch and a chance to talk with them in a relaxed setting -- the Officer's Club! What great fun we had and I enjoyed getting to know Bob Kinzler whose daughter had graduated from West Point and retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. 
Oh and the scenery was fabulous! 
We then were treated to a really UNIQUE experience -- a tour of the old barracks at Hickam that were attacked on December 7! The building still shows the scars of the attack although it now serves as the HQ of the Air Force in the Pacific! So tourists do not get to come here but we did and had personal tour :) 
Yes those marks are damage from Japanese fighters that fired upon the building with 20mm cannons as they flew over. The damage has been preserved as a reminder. There is also a small musuem inside that includes the original US flag that flew over the base on December 7 and was badly damaged but preserved and flown during the Japanese surrender ceremony on the USS Missouri.
Wow so what another great day! We would have several more days of academic presentations that stirred our interest and many questions. Some of these were hot topics such as the use of the atomic bomb and how we remember events.
I also had a great chance to interact with my workshop colleagues and share our teaching ideas and methods. I made some good friends and shared some fun experiences. We even had a short sunset cruise off Waikiki on a catamaran and then 3 of us met 3 Marines who were in Hawaii for an engineering class. We dined together at the beach (well they let us join them at their table instead of waiting an hour for a table at the famous Duke's) and had fun talking military history and their service; they had all served in Iraq/Afghanistan and build air fields. They were fascinated by our workshop and it was a sort of bridge from the past to the present. Now stay tuned as my next post will take you to the Mighty Mo! and my personal adventure on Ford Island :)
